Santander Consumer USA Inc. (“SC”) is helping victims of domestic violence find financial freedom and funding an initiative to remove economic barriers for women and teen girls who have been trafficked. The Santander Consumer USA Inc. Foundation is providing grants of $250,000 to support New Friends New Life, which restores and empowers trafficked and sexually exploited teen girls, women and their children, and $160,000 to Genesis Women’s Shelter & Support, which will deliver program and administrative support to support survivors of abuse and trafficking.
The $250,000 grant to New Friends New Life will provide funding for its Economic Empowerment and Barrier Removal Initiative that addresses the economic and legal barriers facing 250 adult survivors. A portion of the funding will support financial literacy, employment coaching and benchmarked financial services. It will also partially fund the launch of a legal advocacy clinic to create a legal action plan to address barriers to employment.
The $160,000 grant to Genesis Women’s Shelter & Support will provide funds to match the savings that 30 families accumulate before leaving transitional housing. It will also help Genesis clients improve their credit score and start their new lives with some financial security from savings.
“Women everywhere face social, cultural and economic barriers to equality, particularly if they are in high risk or unsafe situations. These grants support financial empowerment and economic mobility for women whose resources or access to resources may be limited. The missions of New Friends New Life and Genesis Women’s Shelter – which includes providing hope and opportunity for women and children who have been abused and exploited – are critically important and timely, and we are pleased to support this transformative work.”
Mahesh Aditya
Santander Consumer USA CEO
“Trafficking survivors often face significant roadblocks that prevent them from finding conventional employment, which is vital to achieving economic stability,” said New Friends New Life CEO Bianca Davis. “We are so grateful for this transformative grant from the Santander Consumer USA Foundation which strategically clears the path forward for survivors, giving them the opportunity to truly be free from the exploitation and abuse of their past.”
“The women who come to us are literally fighting for their lives,” said Jan Edgar Langbein, CEO of Genesis Women’s Shelter & Support. “We don’t just provide them shelter from their abusers. Our mission is to help them become self-sufficient and help put them on a path to a safer, more secure future. That is easier to do with the help of organizations like the Santander Consumer USA Foundation.”
New Friends New Life and Genesis Women’s Shelter & Support are both past grant recipients from the Santander Consumer USA Inc. Foundation.