💫A very special announcement from Vania!

Honoured to be representing El Salvador and Latin America- Vania Labios

In 2023, our partners at OM Australia suggested I look at the work that International Justice Mission (IJM) was doing in El Salvador. I then came across an article about IJM's success in helping a survivor in El Salvador secure a guilty verdict against her perpetrator. For a survivor of violence in El Salvador, this was a significant outcome and no small feat.

Inspired, I reached out to IJM El Salvador. Ahead of International Women’s Day in 2023, I visited their office and brought a cake! What started as a simple gesture became the beginning of a yearly tradition and a beautiful partnership.

Over the past three years, it has been an absolute delight to come together to celebrate each organisation’s work and share our hearts, vision, and dreams for a better El Salvador.

This past week, we celebrated together again as I had the honour of accepting an invitation from IJM to serve as a Leadership Council Member on the Global Survivor Network, alongside nine other incredible survivor leaders from around the world.

I am humbled to be the first Leadership Council Member representing El Salvador, and to also have the privilege of representing Latin America on this international stage.

It is an incredible honour to serve as a council member and contribute to a global movement that empowers survivors, amplifies their voices, and influences policies and programs that impact vulnerable communities.

Personally, this appointment feels like the culmination of what Jesus has done in my life through the hard, hidden seasons of healing, now being outworked in the light.

I am overwhelmed at how He has taken the many parts of my story, including the broken pieces of my life and suffering of others that have sat in the recesses of my heart and mind, and made something beautiful from them. It feels incredibly sacred and purposeful.

I am inspired and deeply committed, not only to represent El Salvador well in this capacity, but to do so in a way that honours the countless Salvadoran women and children whose stories, alongside my own, from as far back as the civil war, have shaped my unwavering passion and resolve for justice and change.

I am also committed to strengthening the presence and voices of survivors from Latin America on this international stage.

A huge thank you to the IJM El Salvador team for their incredible support, encouragement, and for entrusting me with this significant role and opportunity to live out God’s call on my life in this space. 

I’m looking forward to sharing more of this journey with you all as I go forward in this role and continue the work of Salvador’s HOPE.

Thank you for being part of this journey!

Vania xx