Hi!

Can we take a moment to think about spring? 🌱

Let’s start with gratitude. Who is one person or a thing you are thankful for today? Is it warm coffee, a hot shower, blue skies, your partner, the sound of the birds, the strength of your body, the health of a family member.

Now, close your eyes and imagine the smell of freshly cut grass. Wildflowers. The warmth of the sun on your skin.

Let your gratitude for the change of the season bloom inside your chest.

Breathe in… Then let it go…

Okay, let’s get into it.

What’s in the newsletter today

• The Girl Who Goes Alone- A poem we are obsessed with and why

• Strength training can help women live longer

• Indigenous Bolivian women are learning Taekwondo

A woman wrote to us on Facebook and shared that eight years ago she was attacked on the Centennial Trail in Spokane, WA. This is just one of the many, many harrowing stories we have heard over the past few weeks.

As most of you know, Pchy is planning to walk 35 miles of the Centennial Trail over three days to raise awareness about safety on the trail for women. (Find info on the walk here)

(Btw Pchy was featured on KXLY and KHQ Spokane, WA local news)

She referenced a poem and a particular line in the poem that she holds near to her as her motto.

“The girl who goes alone says with her body the world is worth the risk.”

As we at Pchy continue to have conversations about and develop our technology, we are actively discussing how to empower people and not invoke fear. We want to build an app that is rooted in women and intersectionally marginalized groups sharing information to help keep each other safe.

What we don’t want to be is a policing app that becomes a source of negativity and fear. Have you ever used the Citizen App!? My goodness, that’s a scary place. Another example would be Nextdoor.

Nextdoor began with the intention of connecting neighbors to each other. “It's where communities come together to greet newcomers, exchange recommendations, and read the latest local news.”

It wasn’t the founder’s intention for Nextdoor to be a noisy mess of missing dogs and stolen packages. A place that breeds fear of our neighbors rather than connectivity.

The Girl Who Goes Alone is a poem by former Washington State Laureate- Elizabeth Austen.

It has become our motto as well. We will hold these words as a guiding beacon of hope as we work to create a platform for information sharing to encourage us to look out for each other’s safety and well-being.

Here is a snippet of the poem but you can find Elizabeth reading the entire poem here.

Women who strength train live longer

From NPR’s “How to thrive as you age” project. Did you know that hitting the gym or doing resistance training could add years to your life? And guess what? Women may reap the most rewards!

Ann Martin, for example, is in her late 60s, and found her groove with strength training and now swears by it. Incorporating just a few minutes of resistance exercises into her daily routine has her feeling unstoppable, even before she rolls out of bed!

But the benefits don't stop there! A recent study revealed that regular strength training sessions can reduce cardiovascular mortality by a whopping 30% in women! 😲 Dr. Martha Gulati, one of the study authors, believes exercise is the best medicine, and we couldn't agree more!

Sure, aerobic activities are fantastic, but let's not overlook the magic of weight training. It's not just about building muscles; it's about boosting mood, metabolism, and overall vitality!

You can find more on that study over at NPR.

Women in Bolivia are learning Taekwondo

Speaking of being active! We've got an inspiring story to share about Bolivian warrior Lidia Mayta!

After surviving a violent attack, Lidia turned to taekwondo for empowerment and found her calling in helping other Indigenous women defend themselves against gender-based violence in Bolivia.

Lidia was determined after her experience to never to feel helpless again, so she joined a woman-only taekwondo class at Warmi Power studio in El Alto.

Her passion for self-defense led her to join the training team, where she assists in translating instructions into indigenous languages like Aymara. Now, she's on a mission to help other women shed their fears and stand tall against violence.

In a country where 8 out of 10 women experience physical violence, Lidia's work is more crucial than ever. Together with organizations like Coordinadora de la Mujer, she's fighting to break the cycle of violence and empower women across Bolivia.

Let's salute Lidia and all the fierce women like her who are making a difference one kick at a time! 💃 (Video here)

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Till next week! We love you!

Team Pchy 🍑