Volunteering 6 years at Gateway; 2 years previously
The reason I chose to work in the Domestic Violence movement is because
domestic violence has been a serious issue for many years while people
look the other way thinking this is only a "family problem".
Domestic Violence is a crime.
The reasons I want to help women and children who are victims of
Domestic Violence are: assist women and children in domestic
violence situations to become strong enough to have a voice of their
own; help women and children realize their true value and worth;
nurture those who have been beaten down physically and emotionally and
help them resurface their self-respect; teach everyone that they have
the "right" to say "No, you can't treat me like that".
My favorite Gateway memories are when I do speaking engagements to
inform the public about domestic violence and the services of
Gateway. One group I will never forget was a group of men from
the Knights of Columbus on a Saturday morning. As I waited to be
called to the podium, I thought to myself, "these men are not going to
be interested in what I have to say". The reason I thought that
is because statistics show that 96% of all perpetrators of domestic
violence are, indeed, men.
Truly committed to my speaking engagements, I talked about physical and
emotional abuse; complicated reasons why women stay in a domestic
violence situation. I pointed out that domestic violence occurs
in families of every economic level and educational background. I
listed the services of Gateway and offered information on what kind of
help to offer victims of domestic violence.
To my delight, this audience of young men and older men were totally
interested in everything I had to say. They kept me there for
almost an hour with many serious questions. This single audience
of men blew me away with their concerns and sympathy regarding the
problems of domestic violence. I walked out of there happy and
proud. I was happy to have had the opportunity to do another
speaking engagement and proud of my audience.
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Last Updated ( Saturday, June 09 2007 )
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Volunteer Voices Section 
