Rock the Resilience: Event showcases young talent while rallying against domestic violence and sexual assault

PALMER — One in two women in the Mat-Su Valley will experience domestic violence and/or sexual assault, according to No More Mat-Su, a community driven movement committed to putting an end to that dark statistic once and for all.

“No more.”

That was the chant Monday evening, during the second annual Rock the Resilience event at the Glenn Massay Theater. Dozens of high school and middle school students showcased their talents through visual art, music, poetry and dance to show what true love looks like while advocating against toxic love.

"I thought the theme of love was spot on in terms of the focus of the student board - healthy relationships of all kinds,” RTR committee leader Janel Gagnon said. “The fact that so many very busy, very talented students and adults gave their time on a Monday evening to devote to love and creating awareness about domestic violence and sexual assault through art gives me a lot of hope and makes my heart so happy."

NMMS is a local chapter of the national program, “No More,” a campaign aiming to end domestic violence and sexual assault. A number of nonprofit organizations teamed up with NMMS to support their mission.

Becky Stoppa, community impact director for United Way of Mat-Su, attended a booth to promote her organization’s Be You program, which is a “positive message campaign” that seeks to flip the stereotype that a majority of teens drink alcohol. She said that 78 percent of Alaskan teens do not drink alcohol.

“A majority of kids are making good choices,” Stoppa said.

This year, United Way of Mat-Su and its Be You campaign sponsored the Photo Voice project, a youth oriented effort that asked the students of Valley Pathways, “what is love?” Participating students shared photos with prose underneath to describe what love meant to them or what it could me to anyone. Some shared photos of their dog while others showed pictures of a rose or vinyl record. The posters were hung up in the hallway entering the theater so attendees could see how music, relationships, school, or even photography itself represented love.

“Some of them really, really tug at your heartstrings,” Stoppa said. “It’s pretty powerful.”

No More Mat-Su Adult Advocate Debbie Bushnell attended the NMMS booth with her son Blake. Bushnell has been involved with No More Mat-Su for five years. She said that there is a shift happening in NMMS, a shift towards more youth involvement and leadership.

“Their voice is stronger for their peers,” Bushnell said. “The youth is where it needs to start to break this chain of violence.”

Gagnon said that this year’s performances are a mix of high school, middle school and some adult performers. She said that most of the performers were high school groups and she wants to involve more middle schools next year as they continue to grow their youth volunteer base. She said the NMMS student board currently has six students from across the Valley.

“If there’s going to be a major cultural shift… it’s going to happen with younger people,” Gagnon said.

Gagnon said that in order to break the cycle of violence, it’s import to keep raising awareness while educating children as early as possible, ideally before they start forming romantic relationships. She said that if children are taught how to treat their friends and family with respect, that will hopefully transfer over to all types of relationships in the future.

Colony High School student Charly Rentz sang alongside her choir class, performing “Truth” by Andrea Ramsey.

“I’ve never done an event like this before,” Rentz said. “I think it’s important to promote what a good relationship looks like.”

Rentz said that a heathy relationship should have: communication, commitment, loyalty, and respect. She said there’s a stigma around the topic of teen dating violence, that it’s something most people would prefer not to talk about. She said that as difficult as it is to talk about this subject, it’s vital to do so because it’s so prevalent.

“It’s a big part of our lives,” Rentz said.

Rentz’s mother Kelly is in her first year as the CHS choir instructor. Kelly was thankful the Glenn Massay donated the space for this event. She said that domestic violence and sexual assault are all too common for all ages.

“I think it’s so widespread it doesn’t target any demographic,” Kelly said.

Kelly affirmed that breaking the cycle should start as early as possible. She said that it’s important for middle and high school students to learn about what a functional partnership looks like because this is the time of their lives where they are starting to learn about romantic relationships for themselves.

“The more we can model what a healthy relationship is to these kids, the more they can be aware if they find themselves in an unhealthy relationship,” Kelly said.

CHS was one of several schools that performed on the big stage. Kelly said that music is a very effective way to resonate big messages like the theme of the song her class performed. She said that “Truth” is about the lies girls are told their whole lives and breaking free from them. She referenced the closing lyrics, “you are beautiful, and you are enough.”

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman reporter Jacob Mann at jacob.mann@frontiersman.com