Genesis STAR Teen Auxiliary

Join us for the STAR kick-off party, Tuesday September 24th from 6:30-7:30! This meeting will be a great to time meet fellow STAR members, learn more about the program, and to apply for leadership roles! Invite your friends for a night you don’t want to miss!
If you plan on attending, please RSVP to [email protected]

“My name is Lesley Martinez-Aviles and I am a senior at the School of Science and Engineering. This is my first year working with the Genesis Women’s Shelter and the STAR program. I joined STAR after hosting a drive at my school during the month of Domestic Violence Awareness Month, and wanting to know more about what Genesis had to offer. My favorite part of STAR has been being able to participate in STAR nights and interacting with kids that have taught me that you can never be too old to build lego towers or play cops and robbers”.

“Hey y’all, my name is Hannah Robles and I am a senior at the Judge Barefoot Sanders Law Magnet and this is my second year working with Genesis and STAR. My experience with STAR has been motivating and amazing, being surrounded by a community that values the ideas of safety, change, and advocacy. My favorite part of STAR is doing STAR Nights and getting to know the kids who stay with Genesis. Seeing them from that first STAR Night to the last is eye opening on how much you can impact a life. With this, my goal is to become a human rights lawyer and work hard to make sure my community is safe and no child has to see the darkness, but only light. “

In recognition of Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month, we’re going to introduce you to our awesome STAR members throughout the month of February and share
“My name is Daniela Hallack and I am a junior at Greenhill. I’ve been with the Genesis Women’s Shelter and STAR for the past two years. I joined STAR because I wanted to learn and understand more about a topic, domestic violence, that is not as often talked about as other subjects. I want to create a more informed community through the STAR program!”

Last week, we hosted our monthly STAR night! We painted turkeys, made thankful hands, and enjoyed cupcakes!

First STAR Night of the year was a success!
We made spiders and did a Halloween scavenger hunt and ended the night with

Our first STAR meeting of the year is next Tuesday on 9/19 at 6:00 at 2023 Lucas Drive! Bring your friends and come and join us! We will be discussing STAR, teen dating violence, and planning out our year for 2023-2024. You do not want to miss out! Please RSVP to [email protected]

STAR night included making spring animals, eating cupcakes, and lots of laughs
We cannot thank our STAR volunteers enough for making such a great impact on our kiddos

“My name is Daniela Hallack and I am a sophomore at Greenhill. I’ve been with the Genesis Women’s Shelter and STAR for the past year. I joined STAR because I wanted to learn and understand more about a topic, domestic violence, that is not as often talked about as other subjects. I think it’s important to be able to know how to empower women and create a safe space for them as well as teach others how to help. I want to create a more supporting and informed community through the STAR program!”

“My name is Riya Kommineni and I’m a junior at Greenhill. I have been a member of STAR for the last two years. I joined STAR to help decrease the stigma surrounding conversations about domestic abuse and raise awareness in my community to help women and girls in abusive situations. I’m so excited for all the work I’ll be doing with my peers at STAR!”

“Hi there! My name is Hannah and this is my first time working with the Genesis Women’s Shelter and STAR. I found out about STAR and its mission through a STAR alumni and felt that its mission aligns with my goals and ideals. I absolutely love working with the children and in part, see some of myself in them, needing a support system and and there to distract them from what’s going on in their lives. My goal is to become an attorney and use my voice to help those who don’t have one or need to strengthen theirs. Humans rights is something to protect and Genesis has opened my passion on this topic even more. Genesis and STAR has made me louder on the issue and hopefully in the future I can get more opportunities working with Genesis!”

Alina Fuentes, Junior at Irma Rangel Young Women’s Leadership School, on why she joined STAR
“I got involved in STAR because I have noticed that teen domestic violence has often been overlooked and I want to be actively involved in spreading awareness about teen dating violence. I think it’s important to educate people about this topic and I love being able to make an impact on people’s lives!”