Our Story

1991

Susan Whaley and Stacey Hoffman were Special Education teachers when they met in1991.At a professional conference that year, they became alarmed by two distressing circumstances concerning the students they were working with:

The high rate of abuse affecting students with developmental disabilities,

The lack of educational options for abuse prevention and student empowerment to address the problem abuse.

1998

In 1998, Susan and Stacey founded the Safe Life Coalition to develop teaching strategies and educational materials to reduce the risk of victimization and re-victimization of their students and others.

2002

In 2002, along with Dr. Hyun-Sook Park, they received U.S. Department of Education funding and created the Safe Life Project (SLP). The project resulted in research-based curriculum lessons on personal safety and abuse prevention for students with developmental disabilities and students with autism. It provided training and workshops to educators, support agencies and families. The project also disseminated information to raise awareness. Music was added to enhance the curriculum via Ben Hoffman, who became the Music Consultant/Director for the Safe Life Project.

2006

When the 4-year funding period ended in 2006, Stacey and Susan returned to teaching positions and continued work through Safe Life Coalition (SLC). Their work to address the problem of abuse continued.

2016

In November 2016, Susan and Stacey formed the Safe Life Project Non-Profit Organization. This non-profit provides classes for students with disabilities regarding the problem of abuse, personal safety/abuse prevention/reporting, skills for healthy relationships & overall well-being. The purpose of the non-profit is two-fold, to make available this important education to those who were not receiving it elsewhere, and to collaborate with, and get feedback from, the teachers using the curriculum to ensure it continues to be effective, current and updated as needed. Due to the overwhelming requests for abuse prevention classes a third member, Cari Branich, joined the non-profit team as Program Manager to ensure smooth growth.

2017

Safe Life Coalition adds two important members to the Safe Life Curriculum Development Team, Betty Vant and Chris Gomes. Betty is an artist who, after painting with brushes and canvases for over 60 years, took it upon herself to learn how to illustrate on an iPad. Betty’s engaging illustrations help to effectively convey lesson concepts. Chris, with his degree in computer science, helped to transition the curriculum from binders and DVD’s to internet downloads. The curriculum is now available through the safelifeproject.com website. Chris is our “Web Guy”!

2023

As demand for classes continue to grow, Safe Life Project Non-Profit merges with 3StrandsGlobal Foundation, a US-based non-profit Anti-Human Trafficking Organization that mobilizes communities to combat human trafficking. Safe Life abuse prevention classes continue to be offered through Safe Life Project Non-Profit/3Strands Global Foundation.

Susan and Stacey trade Non-Profit leadership duties to work on special projects and focus most of their time on Safe Life Coalition curriculum updates and modifications to provide the best possible information, tools and strategies to help empower individuals with disabilities to address the problem of abuse.

2024

As Safe Life Coalition focuses on curriculum updates, Collin Atlee, Safe Life Project Animator, joins the original team members, Stacey, Susan, Ben, Betty, and Chris.

Present Day

Safe Life Coalition continues to present abuse prevention trainings for schools and support agencies, consults with educators, universities, and families. Curriculum development expands to include modifications that will help individuals to learn skills in very specific areas of need. Safe Life Coalition continues to collaborate with Safe Life Project Non-Profit/3Strands Global Foundation to keep the Project Curriculum updated and enhanced. The program is being distributed through the internet, reaching and helping more and more individuals to stay safe and healthy.

The Founders

Stacey Hoffman

Stacey Hoffman has a master’s degree in special education. Stacey’s life work has involved working to develop curriculum to empower individuals with skills for personal safety, abuse prevention, healthy relationships and reporting skills. She has been a teacher for over 40 years, is Co-Founder of the Safe Life Project Non-Profit Organization and Founder/Co-Director of Safe Life Coalition. Both organizations focus on addressing the problem of abuse among individuals with disabilities and autism. Stacey is also a wife, a mother to 4 children, and a grandmother to 2 little girls. When she is not collaborating with Susan, she enjoys Sunday family dinners, her dog and her cats, gardening, and playing golf with her husband.

Susan Whaley

Susan Whaley, a wife, mom, and grandma, lives on a small organic farm with her husband, Milt, their chickens, and cats. Susan has a master’s degree in special education and discovered her passion for teaching individuals with disabilities while attending the University of the Pacific in 1974. During her long career of teaching, she began researching the problem of abuse of individuals with disabilities and has been working to address the problem with her colleague, Stacey Hoffman for the past 30 years. She co-founded Safe Life Project Non-Profit, which offers classes to empower individuals with disabilities to reduce their risk of abuse and is currently Co-Founder/Director of Safe Life Coalition which provides educational and consulting services focusing on personal safety, abuse prevention, reporting skills and the development of healthy relationships for persons with disabilities.