The February 11 4th Annual One Billion Rising will be held at the church from 2 to 4 p.m. where more than a dozen service providers will be available for questions, speakers will either talk about their own experiences with violence or get advice on how to “Break the Chain” the name of the interpretative dance that will be staged at 3:30 p.m. in the church Courtyard. 

When doors open at 2 p.m. English speakers will receive headsets as the event is in Spanish. Resource exhibits will remain open for the entire event, which will feature acclaimed harpist Xavier Montes in the Parish Hall and a Healing Corridor coordinated by Pam Fuller behind the hall.

According to the United Nations statistics, one in three women across the planet will be beaten or raped in their lifetime. With six billion people on the planet and half of them women, this amounts to one billion women faced with this terrible violence.   

“Unacceptable,” said event co-coordinator Rev. Maddie Sifantus. “This movement started as an idea to get one billion people to stand up and say NO to that violence.

“We gather to celebrate women and to create access in our community to organizations and resources. We gather to honor the stories of survivors and to demand an end to the violence and we gather to DANCE together and be a support for each other.”

Classes have been held to teach the “Break the Chain” dance with the last session immediately before Saturday’s event at 1:30 p.m. in the exterior garden of the church.

Choreographed by famed dancer Debbie Allen, you can also learn the “Break the Chain” dance online by visiting: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K8zTzqUYG90