Honoring Story Arc Learning: Champions of Healing ™ in Education & Storytelling Award
From 2016 to 2022, Wings conducted specialized community needs assessments across Colorado to better understand access to care challenges and opportunities for adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse. The assessments sought to understand what barriers to care survivors might be experiencing and what might make it easier to find the services they need.
Through multiple phases of the One Voice and Many Voices Projects, key findings were abundantly clear. Chief among the barriers impacting most adult survivors were the high level of stigma associated with this experience of abuse and a lack of awareness about it – for all audiences (adult survivors themselves, as well as their loved ones, allies and professionals.)
At Wings, we believe that knowledge is power—and that healing grows when silence is broken, stigma is reduced, and adult survivors and allies have access to the information they need and deserve to support full healing and thriving. That’s why we set out to create customized learning options that could meet these needs directly. We know that education and storytelling play crucial roles in creating cultures of healing.
So, on September 25, 2025, during our Champions of Healing ™ launch event, we were so very proud to present the Champions of Healing in Education & Storytelling Award to Story Arc Learning, our partner in these important educational offerings.
Over the past three years, Story Arc partnered with Wings to bring survivor, loved one, and provider voices to life in new and powerful ways. Together, we transformed more than 26 hours of filmed stories—captured by Rick Higgins and Greg Barecki—alongside written content developed by Wings—into two interactive, engaging e-learning courses.
Called Champions of Healing™, the course aims to break stigma, build resilience and ensure more adult survivors of CSA will have the information they need to understand their experiences, navigate their healing journey and be supported by loved ones, allies, and professionals along the way.
In our culture today, it’s far too common that adult survivors face disbelief, denial and even victim-blaming if they do speak out about their experiences. With our Champions of Healing™ e-courses we hope to make it more likely that adult survivors will receive supportive responses from loved ones, allies, and professionals who choose to lean in and support individual and collective healing from CSA trauma—rather than turn away.
From the very beginning, Story Arc approached this project with care, creativity, and deep respect for the survivors at its heart. Their expertise in instructional design helped shape the format of the courses, ensuring the material would be not only informative, but also accessible and impactful for a wide range of learners.
We were especially grateful to Vanessa Fredin, Carly Hill, Pete Mercier, and CEO Dr. Meredith Singleton for their dedication, partnership, and steadfast belief that knowledge and storytelling are essential to collective healing. Their more-than-100% commitment ensured that this learning series could fulfill its purpose: to educate and inspire our communities to become true Champions of Healing™ from one of the most difficult forms of violence and trauma that we face.
It was an honor to celebrate Story Arc Learning and their invaluable contributions to advancing education, awareness, and healing.
Experience the power of storytelling directly by taking a Champions of Healing ™ course and tell us how you’d like to take action to support adult survivors.