New Balance Foundation Awards Grant to E-Motion
The New Balance Foundation has awarded E-Motion Inc. a $30,000 grant in support of its mission to ensure that all people have access to the power of community, movement, and ritual to enhance coping and build resilience. The grant will support a cohort of youth development and social service organizations to build grief-informed, sustained communities of care. Organizational leaders and practitioners will come together for a digital experiential learning experience focused on emotional literacy, the language of loss, and how to integrate the E-Motion approach and programming within their communities.
E-Motion is an innovative, grief-informed, therapeutic approach designed to equip and empower communities to move together through hardships. We are living in a time when individuals and communities are experiencing an unprecedented level of loss and trauma. 60% of Americans struggle with loneliness and that figure climbs to 75% among younger people. When facing the difficult realities of today, communities need tools, language, and experiences to promote integration, resilience, and connection. Through movement, community, and ritual, E-Motion programs unlock the power of communities to move with, rather than away from, hard things.
“We are grateful to the New Balance Foundation for recognizing the vast need for practical tools and grief conscious frameworks that support organizations - especially direct service providers who are first responders to community needs - to enhance coping with grief and loss,” said E-Motion Director Sally Rowland. “We look forward to building this cohort and working together in partnership to change the way we show up for grievers, as organizations and as a society.”
With support from the New Balance Foundation, community organizations will gain access to E-Motion content, training, and customized support to integrate E-Motion programming and activities into their organizations, strengthening grief-consciousness and building sustained communities of care. The multi-module experience combines the power of movement, the strength of community, and the healing energy of ritual to enhance our capacity to cope with loss. E-Motion programming can be implemented proactively to enhance the emotional health and coping capacity of an organization or in response to a significant community tragedy or loss.
“At the New Balance Foundation, we've heard from of our community partners the need for more grief-informed support in the event of an organizational tragedy or loss. We're looking forward to partnering with E-Motion in this innovative initiative to bring grief-informed practices, frameworks, and language to our portfolio partners and support them in integrating these into their existing communities,” said Megan Bloch, Director of the New Balance Foundation. “E-Motion’s approach combines the power of movement, community, and ritual to increase organizational coping capacity and we believe this experience will be incredibly impactful for our portfolio partners.“
Applications and eligibility to join the cohort will become available in the Fall of 2024.
Sneak preview: Filming of E-Motion activity training videos to support the cohort is underway
About E-Motion: E-Motion exists to ensure that all people have access to the power of community, movement, and ritual to enhance coping and resilience. We imagine a world where community is a right for grieving people; where people worldwide have access to a community of support when someone significant in their life dies. E-motion was founded in 2023 by Myra Sack, whose life changed when her oldest daughter, Havi, was diagnosed with a fatal neurodegenerative disease in December 2019. Havi died on January 20, 2021 of Tay-Sachs disease. Blending bereavement-science, spirituality and sport, E-Motion evolved out of a new way of living with the most difficult thing. www.emotion-mc.org
About the New Balance Foundation: The New Balance Foundation's mission is to drive change in our global communities with an enduring commitment to preventing childhood obesity and championing the future success of today’s youth. Since 1981, New Balance Foundation has granted more than $140M to charity, investing in research, and clinical, educational and community programs that promote healthy lifestyles, children's fitness and nutrition, and overall community wellness. www.newbalancefoundation.org