July 21, 2021
Page 2
Helping Women
Emerge from Trauma
Culture and faith empowered to address violence
Lisa Saunders is candid that her life hasn’t
been easy. There have been many hills and
valleys.
At 26 years old, she found herself the sin-
gle mother of two sons, a 1-year-old and a
3-year-old. After 9 years, she had left a toxic
and emotionally abusive relationship that left
her feeling broken. Leaving was difficult. And
so were the years she would spend regaining
her footing and learning who she was inside.
Yet through her struggle, Saunders says,
she found strength, transformation and recon-
nection to her faith. It’s a story she shares with
other women throughout her community.
“I’ve sat and told my own story,” said Saun-
ders. “There are so many women out here who
don’t get to connect. I was going to work and
doing these things, but I was completely shat-
tered inside.”
“Just because you work and do these things,
that doesn’t mean you’re fine. The face looks
good, the outfit is great, but inside I’m bleed-
ing. Inside, I might be suicidal. Inside, I have
no self-esteem or I’m hearing tapes of things
that were told to me about who I am.”
Today, Saunders is a wife, mother and
“doting Grammy” who’s passionate about her
faith. Her two sons have flourishing careers
and families of their own. She’s a certified
adult mental health peer support specialist.
And she’s the executive director of Faith-
Bridge, a nonprofit organization dedicated to
helping women — particularly Black women
and women of color — emerge from trau-
ma to reconnect in a life-transforming and
faith-affirming way.
The women she connects with may be
emerging from abandonment, incarceration,
substance use disorders or abusive relation-
ships. Some are struggling just with being
an empty nester. Saunders expressly serves
women of color and Black women who, stud-
Photo by M otoya n akaMura /M ultnoMah C ounty C oMMuniCations
Lisa Saunders is the executive director of FaithBridge, a nonprofit organization
dedicated to helping women — particularly Black women and women of color —
emerge from trauma to reconnect in a life-transforming and faith-affirming way.
ies and surveys show, often turn to their faith
during trying times and turmoil.
In the wake of crises like the COVID-19
pandemic and the surge in community vio-
lence that have disproportionately affected
people of color, Multnomah County is funding
services at FaithBridge as part of a series of
unprecedented investments — guided by in-
put from over 1,000 people and organizations
— in public and behavioral health programs
The
Week
in
Review
Prison for Justice Center Fire
Cyan Waters Bass, 21, was sentenced to
4 years in prison Monday for setting fire
to the downtown Justice Center, causing
$46,000 in damages during a Sept. 23 pro-
test and riot. Bass admitted to using a wrist
rocket slingshot to break windows, a flam-
mable liquid to set the building on fire, and
then throwing a Molotov cocktail toward
police officers.
Woman Assistant Coach Named
The Portland Trail
Blazers hired former
Oregon Ducks and
WNBA guard Ednie-
sha Curry as an as-
sistant coach, Jason
Quick of the Athletic
reported Monday. An
assistant coach for
the men’s basketball team at the University
of Maine, Curry, 42, will be the first female
coach in Blazers history.
that support resilience and healing.
According to a Washington Post and Kaiser
Family Foundation Poll, 87 percent of Black
women, more than any other group, identified
faith in helping them get through tough times.
Saunders also cites a Pew Research Center
Religious Landscape Study in which 84 per-
cent of Black women surveyed said religion
C ontinued on P age 5
and Seth Robert Thompson, 31. The cause
of the fire has also been determined as fire-
works that caught a dumpster on fire.
First Sentence for Insurrection
A man who pleaded guilty to breaching
the Senate chamber during the US Capitol
insurrection on Jan. 6 was sentenced Mon-
day to eight months in prison. Paul Hodgk-
ins, 38, is the first Capitol rioter convicted
of a felony to be sentenced.
I-84 Bridge Install Delayed
The planned installation of the Blumenauer
pedestrian bridge and closure of I-84 over
the weekend of July 9-12 was postponed be-
cause of additional planning work, accord-
ing to the Oregon Department of Transpor-
tation. A new date will be announced when
it becomes available, officials said.
New Logo for Winterhawks
The Portland Winter-
hawks revealed a new
logo last week, removing
Native American imagery
which had long been criticized as having
racist overtones. The team has been under
new ownership since January.
Federal Marijuana Bill Eyed
Top Senate Democrats, including Oregon
Sen. Ron Wyden, introduced a bill last
week that would decriminalize marijuana
at the federal level. “The war on drugs has
really been a war on people, particularly
people of color…it’s not just an idea whose
time has come, it’s long overdue,” said
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer.
Fire Victims, Cause Released
The Oregon State Medical Examiner identi-
fied the two men killed in a predawn apart-
ment fire on July 4 at Northeast Weidler
Street as Robert William Gremillion, 31,
Stunning Fish Discovered
A strange-looking fish washed up on the
Oregon coast near Seaside last week,
stunning beach walkers. The 3.5-foot,
100-pound opah fish, also known as a
moonfish, is typically found in warmer,
tropical waters, though it’s not unheard of
to find them along the Oregon coast, au-
thorities said.