By Hailey Chapman
CherryRoad Media
Special to the Tribune

In 2008, Jana Lynne Mackey lost her life as a result of violence at the hands of her ex-boyfriend. In her life, she was an advocate for women’s rights and spent years volunteering to aid victims of sexual assault and domestic violence. In her honor, Jana’s Campaign has ensured that her memory will live on, her namesake campaign as a beacon of hope for individuals who have or are experiencing gender and relationship violence.

Through Jana’s Campaign, mother Christie and stepfather Curt Brungardt have built an organization that provides quality educational programming that prevents gender and relationship violence. Alongside work from Executive Director Kaiti Blackburn, various volunteers and team members, the Brungardt’s have dedicated their lives to ensuring safety within relationships.

Through events like their upcoming Empty Place at the Table Gala, Jana’s Campaign is able to raise money to further their impact on communities who may not know that domestic violence can happen to anyone at any time; communities whose members may need resources and support.

Jana’s Campaign focuses on three main program areas: middle school and high school education, higher level education and local communities.

“This issue is impacting a lot of young people and those being impacted are getting younger and younger,” Blackburn said.

Within middle school and high school prevention education, Jana’s Campaign provides direct programming, bystander intervention training and indirect programs where they are able to train educators and advocates to implement programs like Safe Dates within the classroom.

On college campuses, they provide various direct and indirect programs through regional educational safety summits located in Kansas, Texas and Illinois.

Community education focuses on citizens, unveiling the reality of gender and relationship violence, highlighting the complexity of the issues through live webinars or community events.

Blackburn has served as an Education and Prevention Specialist prior to her role as Executive Director, serving Jana’s Campaign for over eight years. In that time, she shared that she has seen programs evolve based on the needs of students. Today, she shared, there is a more prevalent threat online and through technology which has altered various prevention education methods.

“With phones, access to the internet, social media, it can be easier to try and gain power and control over a partner, so we discuss setting healthy boundaries or what can be considered stalking to aid in that area,” Blackburn said.

Also within that time, she shared that partnerships with local organizations like local school districts has allowed Jana’s Campaign to widen their reach amongst the community and surrounding areas.

Blackburn added that working with Options has been instrumental in Jana’s Campaign’s growth over the years. Options aided in the proclamation of October as Domestic Violence Awareness month, an initiative that further spread awareness within the community. Options provides direct resources to victims of domestic violence, a valued partner of Jana’s Campaign whose primary focus is prevention education.

“Events like the proclamation showcase that it can happen to anyone. It doesn’t matter your age, race, gender, none of that matters, it truly can impact anyone. It has helped people understand that this is an issue in all communities and it is important to be educated about what these behaviors are and what they can be like when you are experiencing them,” she said.

“Empty Place serves as an opportunity for community members to come together to support our work in middle schools, high schools, on college campuses and in communities,” Blackburn said, sharing that the event provides funds directly to Jana’s Campaign’s Prevention Education. “It serves as a reminder of the lives lost to domestic violence. When Jana lost her life, the Brungardt’s and Jana’s family lost her as a place at her table. It serves as a reminder, not only of Jana’s death, but of those that unfortunately are victims of gender and relationship violence.”

“It really is important for victims to know that they don’t deserve violence in a relationship and that it’s not their fault. It’s really important to create a safety plan,” Blackburn said.