FROM KBFPC’S December 2024 COMMUNITY NEWSLETTER
Friends,
Since my last email all of us at KBFPC, including our extended community of supporters and clients, have been navigating the aftermath of the November shooting incidents. I have been following the legal process including the grand jury indictment of Josiah Kelly on 12 felony counts for the shootings at KBFPC in and Kachemak Bay Recovery Coalition in October. The next step is a scheduled court date of February 10th, and I will continue to update you.
After multiple security consultations, and contractor and insurance adjustor visits, KBFPC closed for several days earlier this month to upgrade agencywide security even further to protect staff and clients going forward and repair the extensive damage resulting from the shootings. And just when we thought things were settling down, the wild weather caused a power outage for many of us on the Southern Kenai Peninsula. The snow storm didn’t cause any damage to the agency’s buildings, but it was another scheduling curveball for staff.
Providing reproductive health care and education, especially for those in our community with financial, geographic, and other barriers, is challenging. At KBFPC we are always navigating funding, regulatory, and political decisions that try to distract us from our mission-driven work. Looking to 2025, now is no different. While continuing to provide life-affirming care, we are preparing for the potential impacts on access to reproductive health (Kaiser Family Foundation, 12/16/24) that a new Administration may mean – from more restrictive qualifications for Medicaid coverage and more limitations on birth control coverage to prohibitive regulations for the Title X program. We are working with partners locally, statewide and nationally to stay abreast of challenges and changes that will impact our communities’ access to reproductive and sexual health and will share news with you as it transpires.
KBFPC has successfully supported community wellness through reproductive healthcare and sexual health education for more than 40 years because of your community support, especially during the most challenging of times. We enthusiastically recognize businesses during our annual Pink Flag Campaign in support of breast cancer awareness each Fall. But, I unintentionally missed one of our new Pink Flag donors in our October shout out that I wanted to acknowledge this month, Coastline Insurance Agency. Thank you! They, like the hundreds of other businesses and individuals this year, donate funds that allow us to care for clients with a variety of life experiences and reproductive health needs. (KBFPC keeps the names of individual donors anonymous to protect their privacy, but please tell us others about your support and invite a friend to become a donor!)
Like all of you, we are spending time with family and friends during closures on December 24 and 25 and January 1. I hope you will be able to celebrate this Winter season, and the returning light; recharging for what 2025 brings. I am so appreciative of my coworkers, our volunteers, and all of you.
Warmly,
Claudia Haines, CEO
Will you be in Anchorage on January 11th at 1pm? Don’t miss Drag Me to the Movies, a new event hosted by the Beartooth Theatre! A portion of the proceeds will benefit KBFPC. We’ll be at the event, so be sure to say hello if you attend. Tickets are going fast.
Join Kachemak Bay Family Planning Clinic and Beavers for a Better World for a Paint & Sip event like no other! Come laugh, get creative, and celebrate Cervical Cancer Awareness month (January). We’ll gather at Grace Ridge Brewing on Friday, January 10 from 6-8 pm. The first 20 attendees will receive a clay vulva to paint in any way they choose; all supplies are provided. Admission is by donation and all proceeds benefit KBFPC. Event is made possible with support from Alaska Run for Women.
Community love enveloped KBFPC this past month, including this flower mandala that graced agency property. We appreciate the outpouring of messages and kindness!
Reproductive Health in the News:
Juneau’s Planned Parenthood Health Center is closed permanently
Library of Congress Launches Digitized Collection of National AIDS Memorial Quilt Records
Cervical cancer deaths drop among younger women; study credits HPV vaccine