Entering the Year Together: A Message from Executive Director Fatimah Loren Dreier

As we begin a new year, I want to take a moment to reconnect and reflect—together. 

I hope the transition into 2026 has been gentle and grounding, offering moments of rest and clarity as we look ahead. I am deeply grateful to be returning to this work and to the community that makes it so meaningful. I have missed the conversations, relationships, and shared purpose that animate this field. 

We are entering the year at a time when many of us are carrying heavy hearts. The national and global landscape continues to test our sense of safety, dignity, and belonging. In moments like these, I often return to a lesson rooted in the African American spiritual tradition: that troubled waters are not only a sign of challenge, but also of movement, transformation, and possibility. When water is stirred, it becomes active. It creates space for renewal. Even when the waves are difficult to navigate, there is wisdom beneath the surface—a place to gather ourselves, deepen our resolve, and imagine what comes next. 

This is where the HAVI’s mission lives. Across the country, our partners—frontline professionals, community leaders, researchers, and advocates—meet some of the most painful realities imaginable and respond with care, courage, and humanity. Together, we advance healing-centered approaches that affirm life, dignity, and connection, even in the midst of harm. 

Carrying a troubled heart is not easy. Whether we are facing personal challenges or grappling with the broader landscape around us, this work asks much of us. And yet, I remain deeply grounded in our shared vision: that transformation is possible when we commit to one another and to the communities we serve. 

As we move through 2026, my hope is that we continue to lean into connection, stay rooted in purpose, and hold fast to the belief that healing work matters—especially in challenging times.  

Thank you for being part of this community and for all the ways you show up for one another and for the people most impacted by violence. I look forward to continuing this journey together. 

With gratitude, 
Fatimah Loren Dreier 
Executive Director, The Health Alliance for Violence Intervention