Raising money to the rhythm

The Genesis Joy House will host a Zumbathon on September 12 from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. According to Julie Swartzlander of the Genesis Joy House, the fundraiser, a Zumba event which will be held at The Walk at Sandy Run on Houston Lake Road, is intended to raise money in support of renovations of a facility and to support female veterans.

“We are nearing the finish line of completing the Genesis Joy House transitional housing facility that exclusively serves female veterans, so this is a fundraiser for us,” explained Swartzlander, who continued that the Zumbathon will be led by Faith Andrews, a certified instructor. The entry fee is $10.

Swartzlander shared that the renovated facility will house homeless female veterans and expressed the importance of supporting the plight of these women.

“Right now, female veterans are the fastest growing segment of the homeless population. In addition to facing PTSD and traumatic brain injury and a lot of the things that male veterans are facing as well, female veterans also, a lot of them, face military sexual trauma while they were deployed or while they were serving. That involves sort of a specialized level of care, and that is something that we want to focus on at Genesis Joy House,” Swartzlander illustrated.

The organization is exclusively for female veterans, Swartzlander said, and that, in addition to providing transitional housing, the Genesis Joy house also offers access to mental health counseling services, vocational training and, “any kind of self-improvement type training that we can provide… so that they can get back on their feet and do it in a safe environment.”

According to Swartzlander, the organization has seen a decline in the amount of donations that they have received and fewer volunteers with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“People were not coming out and volunteering in the same numbers that they were before COVID, so we were just trying to do some fundraisers and things to help us make it across the finish line, [to] finish making the renovations to this facility,” Swartzlander noted, adding that even with the pandemic, they are still working at the project every day, and when they work, they practice social distancing, wear masks and use hand sanitizer.

In addition to the continued work, Swarzlander shared that the organization has been trying to raise funds and embark on partnerships with different organizations, mentioning how grateful the Genesis Joy House is for a recent donation from Northrup Grumman in the amount of $3,000. She noted as well that the company has also helped with volunteer work on the project. Though they have paid some skilled contractors for their labor, Swartzlander highlighted that, “by far, the majority of everything on this whole facility has been done with the sweat equity of volunteers.”

Swartzlander explained that Zumba is a fast-paced exercise class, in which participants dance, but as an aerobic exercise.

“It’s really just fun…and you just have a good time doing it. You just go out there and have a good time dancing with your friends,” Swartzlander proclaimed.

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