`Spirit of advocacy'

Many state employees and other Washingtonians take great pride in giving back to their communities and providing opportunities for those at the margins. The state Elections Division's new minority language education coordinator, Cristina Labra, is such a "hometown hero" and her creative project is about to receive prestigious national award.

Labra, 28, who grew up in Chile, the daughter of a farmer and architect, has a master's degree from Evergreen, and has been active in programs for youth, English-as-a-second-language and programs to help victims of domestic violence. She is co-founder of MIJAS, which runs a cooperative restaurant in Olympia, serving a monthly benefit meal that allows the community to learn more about domestic violence and the relief services and shelter that are operated by SafePlace. MIJAS is a stepping-stone employment center for Spanish-speaking women who are struggling to establish new lives. People referred to the program by SafePlace have been through 40 hours of training. Labra and the MIJAS project will be honored with the 2010 Spirit of Advocacy Award of the National Network to End Domestic Violence next Tuesday evening in Washington, D.C. The $5,000 award will be used to support the project, which is looking for a commercial kitchen stove.
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