Recover. Rebuild. Rise.
The Freebird Organization is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to helping survivors rise, rebuild, and reclaim their lives. All donations are tax-deductible to the fullest extent allowed by law.
OUR STRORY
Two Path
One Shared Purpose
Freebird began with two women whose lives unknowingly intersected years before they ever became partners in this mission.
One had lived through the justice system. The other had spent nearly four decades serving within it. Together, they discovered that lived experience and professional expertise could become a powerful force for healing and change.
“
Sometimes the people destined to change your life are already part of your story.
THE BEGINNING OF FREEBIRD
LIVED EXPERIENCE
From surviving to helping others rise.
Karin’s Story
There are moments in life that change who you are forever. For me, those moments began long before I ever stepped into a courtroom.
I grew up in a home where abuse wasn’t just emotional. It was verbal, physical, financial, and controlling. As a teenager, I learned what it felt like to live in fear, to question my own worth, and to believe that my voice didn’t matter.
At seventeen years old, I was forced to leave my home and begin rebuilding my life on my own.
“I thought surviving my childhood would be the hardest part of my journey. It wasn’t.”
Years later, during a difficult divorce, my life became something I never could have imagined. People close to me turned against me. Those I loved, my friends, my family, my clients, and my professional relationships were drawn into a battle they never asked to be part of.
My privacy disappeared. I felt watched, questioned, judged, and attacked from every direction. Every day seemed to bring another challenge, another accusation, and another attempt to break me.
The Fight for Truth
There were moments when it felt like the entire world had decided who I was before I ever had the chance to speak for myself.
But I kept fighting.
I believed that truth mattered.
I believed that justice mattered.
After years of legal battles, I was acquitted. I later pursued a federal civil rights lawsuit, seeking accountability for what had happened. When that case finally came to an end, people often asked me what I wanted most.
It wasn’t money.
It wasn’t recognition.
It wasn’t revenge.
It was my voice.
I wanted the opportunity to tell my story—not for myself, but so that another woman sitting in silence would know she wasn’t alone.
Because I know what it feels like to believe there is no way out. I also know what it feels like to find one. That belief became the beginning of something much bigger than me. It became Freebird.
The Unexpected
Reunion
Years later, life brought me face to face with retired Suffolk County District Court Judge Janine Barbera-Dalli. As we talked, we discovered something neither of us expected.
Years earlier, during one of the most difficult times in my life, Judge Barbera-Dalli had presided over one of my arraignments.
At first, it seemed like an incredible coincidence. But the more we spoke, the more we realized our paths had crossed for a reason.
One had lived through the justice system.
One had spent her career serving within it.
Their experiences were different, but their purpose was the same.
Judge Janine’s Story
For nearly four decades, Judge Janine Barbera-Dalli has devoted her life to helping people navigate some of life’s most difficult moments.
As an attorney, District Court Judge, Acting County Court Judge, mediator, divorce coach, and advocate, she witnessed firsthand how trauma, conflict, and abuse affect individuals and families.
Throughout her career, she became known not simply for interpreting the law, but for seeing the people behind every case.
Whether helping families through divorce, presiding over Human Trafficking Court, or guiding individuals toward resolution through mediation, her work has always been rooted in compassion, fairness, and hope.
Together, we realized we could do more than share our stories. We could help others write new ones.
Why Freebird Exists
Freebird wasn’t founded because two women shared the same past. It was founded because they brought two different perspectives to the same mission.
One understood what it felt like to need help.
The other understood how the system worked.
Together, we believed survivors deserved both.
Freebird exists to transform lived experience into action by helping survivors of domestic violence find safety, rebuild their confidence, achieve financial independence, and discover purpose beyond survival.
We believe healing is only the beginning.
Through advocacy, mentoring, education, career development, community partnerships, and opportunities for economic independence, we help survivors build lives where they are no longer defined by abuse or dependent on those who harmed them.
Our mission is not simply to help people leave abusive situations. It is to help them build lives filled with hope, dignity, purpose, and the freedom to help someone else rise.