More than $400,000 in grants from
the Santander Consumer USA Inc.
Foundation support New Friends New Life and the Genesis Women's
Shelter & Support
DALLAS, June 7, 2022
/PRNewswire/ -- Santander Consumer USA Inc. ("SC") is helping victims of domestic
violence find financial freedom and funding an initiative to remove
economic barriers for women and teen girls who have been
trafficked. The Santander Consumer USA Inc. Foundation is providing grants of
$250,000 to support New Friends New
Life, which restores and empowers trafficked and sexually exploited
teen girls, women and their children, and $160,000 to Genesis
Women's Shelter & Support, which will deliver program
and administrative support to support survivors of abuse and
trafficking.
The $250,000 grant to New Friends
New Life will provide funding for its Economic Empowerment and
Barrier Removal Initiative that addresses the economic and legal
barriers facing 250 adult survivors. A portion of the funding will
support financial literacy, employment coaching and benchmarked
financial services. It will also partially fund the launch of a
legal advocacy clinic to create a legal action plan to address
barriers to employment.
The $160,000 grant to Genesis Women's Shelter & Support will
provide funds to match the savings that 30 families accumulate
before leaving transitional housing. It will also help Genesis
clients improve their credit score and start their new lives with
some financial security from savings.
"Women everywhere face social, cultural and economic barriers to
equality, particularly if they are in high risk or unsafe
situations," said Santander Consumer USA CEO Mahesh
Aditya. "These grants support financial empowerment and
economic mobility for women whose resources or access to resources
may be limited. The missions of New Friends New Life and
Genesis Women's Shelter – which
includes providing hope and opportunity for women and children who
have been abused and exploited – are critically important and
timely, and we are pleased to support this transformative
work."
"Trafficking survivors often face significant roadblocks that
prevent them from finding conventional employment, which is vital
to achieving economic stability," said New Friends New Life CEO
Bianca Davis. "We are so grateful
for this transformative grant from the Santander Consumer
USA Foundation which strategically
clears the path forward for survivors, giving them the opportunity
to truly be free from the exploitation and abuse of their
past."
"The women who come to us are literally fighting for their
lives," said Jan Edgar Langbein, CEO
of Genesis Women's Shelter &
Support. "We don't just provide them shelter from their abusers.
Our mission is to help them become self-sufficient and help put
them on a path to a safer, more secure future. That is easier to do
with the help of organizations like the Santander Consumer
USA Foundation."
New Friends New Life and Genesis
Women's Shelter & Support are both past grant recipients
from the Santander Consumer USA
Inc. Foundation.
About Santander Consumer USA
Santander Consumer USA Holdings
Inc. (NYSE: SC) ("SC") is a full-service consumer finance company
focused on vehicle finance, third-party servicing and delivering
superior service to our more than 3.1 million customers across the
full credit spectrum. SC, which began originating retail
installment contracts in 1997, had an average managed asset
portfolio of approximately $64
billion (for the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31, 2021). The company is a wholly owned
subsidiary of Santander Holdings USA, Inc. and is part of Madrid, Spain-based global banking leader
Banco Santander. For more information about Santander Consumer
USA, please visit
www.santanderconsumerusa.com.
About New Friends New Life
Founded in Dallas, in 1998, New
Friends New Life (NFNL) restores and empowers trafficked
and sexually exploited teen girls, women and their
children, and drives awareness of the issue and its
prevalence. By providing access to education, job training,
interim financial assistance, mental health, and spiritual support,
New Friends New Life helps women and their children overcome
backgrounds of abuse, addiction, poverty, and limited
opportunities. In 2021, NFNL served 312 members. NFNL also educates
the community and works to eradicate the epidemic of human
trafficking through advocacy, legislative reform and strategic
partnerships that address systemic causes. In 2018, NFNL opened a
drop-in Youth Resource Center (YRC) in partnership with the Office
of the Governor to serve trafficked and high-risk teen girls. Since
its opening, the YRC has served 442 girls. In 2015, NFNL organized
its Men's Advocacy Group to engage men in the fight against sex
trafficking and exploitation. For more information,
visit http://www.newfriendsnewlife.org.
About Genesis Women's Shelter
& Support
Since opening its doors in 1985, Genesis
Women's Shelter & Support has provided safety, shelter
and expert counseling services to women and children who have
experienced domestic violence. Genesis is committed to removing
every roadblock a woman might face on her journey to the abuse-free
life she deserves. These life-changing services
include an emergency shelter, long-term housing, an
award-winning onsite, K-8 school, daycare, access to legal
representation and cutting-edge therapeutics. Genesis serves more
than 3,700 women and children each year and relies on the generous
support of the Dallas community to
continue providing these services at no cost to clients. For more
information, visit www.genesisshelter.org.
View original
content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/santander-consumer-usa-funds-financial-security-programs-for-survivors-of-human-trafficking-and-domestic-violence-301563026.html
SOURCE Santander Consumer USA
Holdings Inc.