SCJC End of Year Support Campaign + Review

Dear Friends and Community Partners,

As a first-time Executive Director, I’ve been reflecting on what it means to help build an organization rooted in community-held restorative justice. In our first full year as a fiscally sponsored organization, the Southwest Community Justice Coalition (SCJC) made significant strides organizing and developing community relationships, skills and capacity to respond to conflict, harm and violence forging restorative pathways for safety, healing and accountability. Our Core Team of committed leaders and growing base of community members from across La Plata and Archuleta Counties have experienced the power of what it feels like to center practices of collective care that restores dignity and strengthens our shared sense of belonging.  

Grounded in restorative and transformative justice principles and values, our work is driven by the belief that our liberation is a shared project, that justice is relational, and that all of us benefit when we build systems rooted in equity, dignity, and care. 

As we look ahead, our work becomes more important than ever. We need each other to model what safety, accountability, and justice looks like. Our goal is to raise $5,000 before the end of the year. Every dollar donation helps ensure we continue to provide free and accessible services to our community. With your support we will deepen our impact and sustain our mission!  Will you join us?

With Gratitude,

Lindsey Frischer and the Core Team 
Southwest Community Justice Coalition

Help us reach our $5,000 Community Goal

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2025 Impact: What We Built Together

  • +70

    Attendees

    Hosted 7 Community Coalition Meetings in partnership with the Durango Public Library where we engaged more than 70 community members across sectors in restorative circle practice focused on community-building, education, skill and capacity building.

  • RJ Facilitation Training

    Hosted a 20 hour Restorative Justice Circle Keeper Training with 25 community members who can apply these skills within our Coalition as co-facilitators and/or within their own communities and organizations.

  • Virtual Skill-Building Series

    Facilitated a virtual Restorative Justice Practitioner Series focused on facilitation skill-building for 15 community members including non-violent communication; trauma-informed and culturally responsive practices.

  • Regional Host

    Served as regional host for a full-day Statewide Restorative Justice Practitioner Convening, strengthening RJ practice across Colorado.

  • RJ Diversion Plan

     Launched a new Restorative Justice Referral Program with the District Attorney’s Office and Fort Lewis College diverting eligible college students and adults charged with crimes out of the court system and into our restorative justice program focused on providing accountability and repair to the impacted parties.

  • RJ Facilitations

    Facilitated 6 restorative justice community conferences within the RJ-Diversion Program, successfully supporting healing, accountability, and repair.

  • Partnerships

    Developed partnerships with community organizations centering the needs of those directly and disproportionately impacted by structural inequities and cycles of harm.

  • Accessibilty

    Offered all events, trainings, and restorative conferences at no cost, reducing barriers and ensuring community-led accessibility.

In 2024-2025 we invested $55,000 of seed funding from the Colorado Restorative Justice Council into our community to develop the SCJC. We continue to raise funding from state and federal agencies as well as national institutions in order to provide local pathways to restorative justice rooted in our interconnectedness, collective care and wellbeing.

Our Fundraising Values & Why Your Investment Matters

This campaign is not about charity, it is about shared responsibility, economic justice, and collective liberation. We see fundraising as part of the larger work of justice, grounded in these values:

  • Racial, social, and economic justice must guide how resources move, working toward eliminating gatekeeping and funding restrictions.

  • Everyone benefits from investing in the work of safety, belonging, and healing, not just those most harmed.

  • Time, labor, lived experience, and money are all valued equally as contributions to community strength.

  • We treat donors as partners, engaging in transparency, difficult conversations, and shared learning about systemic inequity.

  • We believe in mutuality: community members, staff, volunteers, and donors are all equally important contributors.

  • We reject “trickle-down community engagement” and are committed to redistributing resources to marginalized communities.

  • We aim to foster belonging, not othering, and to invest in a world where healing, accountability, and liberation are accessible to everyone.

By giving to SCJC, you are supporting an emerging ecosystem of community justice across Southwest Colorado.

Help us reach our year-end $5,000 Community Goal

Your donation directly strengthens community-led restorative justice in Southwest Colorado. Here’s what each level of support makes possible: 

$350 - Accessible Community Coalition Meetings:

The cost of ensuring each of our monthly community coalition meetings are accessible. This includes food/beverages; language interpretation; child-care; and transportation are available. These gatherings create conditions for meaningful participation, shared learning, and collective action.

$1,000 - Restorative Justice Process:

Covers the cost of providing a restorative justice diversion or community-based referral. This includes: two trained co-facilitators for up to 10 hours of preparation and circle/conference facilitation; food/beverages for the restorative justice circle/conference; accessibility needs such as translation, transportation, space accommodations. Your gift ensures that impacted parties can access restorative pathways rooted in dignity, care and accountability. 

$2,500 - Train 10 New Community Restorative Justice Facilitators:

Sponsors a 20 hour Restorative Justice Facilitation training for up to 10 community members. These comprehensive trainings:

  • Build local capacity for restorative circles and community conferences

  • Train facilitators who reflect the communities we serve

  • Expand the network of trained practitioners across the region

Your support helps cultivate a skilled, community-rooted restorative justice ecosystem.

$5,000 - Sustain Restorative Justice Programming:

Helps sustain our restorative justice referral programming and commitment to ongoing community skill-building. A gift of this size supports:

  • Facilitator stipends

  • Accessible training opportunities 

  • Materials, food, and meeting accessibility 

  • Continuous collaboration with FLC, the DA’s Office, and community partners 

This is a transformational investment in long-term community safety, accountability and healing.

Ways to Invest:

Make a one-time contribution or become a monthly sustaining partner

Make a Donation through Onward!

Mail a check to:

Southwest Community Justice Coalition
C/O Onward! A Legacy Foundation
P.O. Box 26 Cortez, CO 81321

Volunteer time or Resources

Offer skilled volunteer time, connection, or resources that strengthen our network

To do so, please contact us.

Donate Now

This link will redirect you to the Onward! website for donations.

Together, we are building the community safety and belonging we all deserve.
Thank you for being a partner in this transformative work.