GoFundMe: One of Us Book Goodness

Good day friends!

I wrote a book!  I'm really excited about how close I am with sharing a final product with others!  

Peace Corps Writers sent an email on Oct 27 saying they were "happy to accept One of Us as a Peace Corps Writers book. Your writing is strong and your story an important one."

Friends have asked how they can support the project (Thank you!!).  I'm not one to typically ask for help- between work, grad school, and the book, my energy and finances are a bit stretched. 

Here's where you can help!
The book still needs a thorough copy-edit and then formatting for print.  I have been given rough estimates and the costs should be around $3000. The $2500 goal on here will help offset the costs. I am hoping to send my current manuscript to the copy-editor in the next couple of weeks once the semester calms down. **


Short description from oneofusmovement.com :

"One of Us: Sex, Violence, Injustice. Resilience, Love, Hope.
With this autobiographical narrative of the military judicial system experience as a civilian victim of sexual assault, Sandi Giver has vividly brought to light the challenges of seeking legal justice when all odds are against the victim. Giver takes the reader from the night of the assault in Uganda as a Peace Corps Volunteer to a Norfolk, Virginia, courtroom recounting intimate details to help protect others from a sexual predator. At a time where Peace Corps was under scrutiny for not supporting victims of sexual assault and the military for not keeping alleged perpetrators accountable, this case was the perfect storm."

Publishing One of Us means a lot to me.  I have spent my life serving the marginalized and sexually exploited populations here in the states and overseas. From my experience, I feel like sometimes we can be dismissive of what we don't understand or overlook issues if it isn't personally relevant. 

With publishing One of Us, I hope to shed light on how sexual assault impacts those around us, our loved ones.  With my personal narrative, I am also sharing the challenging reality that I as a victim lived through to seek legal justice.  In my daily life I am doing what I can through genuine conversations to bring about social change where we do not tolerate sexual assault.  I was the first civilian invited to speak one-on-one with General Patton of SAPRO to discuss my experience going through the military legal system and they put into place some of my recommendations.  Change is slowly happening. The book is one more tangible way I want to contribute to this change.  If you want to know more, just ask.  

With that being said, I must get back to writing a final paper on the Violence Against Women Act for grad school.  Thank you sooooo much for your support!  

LinkedIn: Sandi Giver 
Instagram: @SandiAlaska


**Anything extra will go towards:
1. Other book publishing costs
2. Possibly book printing and shipping to those who have helped financially support the project
3. Book launch party to celebrate
4. Grad school so I can learn all of the skills and be that more effective in serving others.