October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month

Whether it is acknowledged or not, we all know a survivor—a woman who has been physically abused or threatened with violence, had words thrown at her that have broken her confidence and sense of self, and earned a salary that was not hers to control.

For me, that survivor is an aunt. For others, it is a mother, sister, friend, neighbor, or colleague.  And far more often than we know, the violence women experience leads to a period of housing insecurity and homelessness.

Jamie, a recent resident in one of Calvary Women’s Services’ housing programs, reminds us that the crisis of domestic violence is not far removed from any of our lives.

“I wish I had the statistics on how many women do not look like what you think homelessness and domestic violence look like. There is no face to it. The only face to [domestic violence] is destruction and the generational trauma created from hiding.”

For over 40 years, Calvary has been a place of safety, healing and a source of support, and empowerment for women fleeing domestic violence and experiencing homelessness. Our vision is clear and our model works. In the last five years alone, we have more than doubled our housing available to survivors and employed a trauma-informed care model that changes women’s lives.

At Calvary, we empower women to end their homelessness, and every five days, a woman moves into her own home. A space where she can start over, heal, grow, and transform her life.

Women are clear with us—one of the biggest challenges they face is achieving financial independence. Many flee homes where they were the leaseholder and are left with debt, others were forced to hand over their weekly paychecks and have no other resources to call their own.

At Calvary, women access financial literacy classes, one-on-one job search support, and a flex fund to help rebuild their financial health and reclaim control of their futures.

Research shows a clear link between periods of economic uncertainty and job instability and increased domestic and intimate partner violence. We know that means more women will arrive at our doors in the coming months—and we will be here to welcome them.

This Domestic Violence Awareness Month, I invite you to stand with survivors.

Will you invest in the futures of women—survivors who have taken the first step toward healing and independence?

Together, we can ensure that the women who come through our doors are safe, able to heal, and have a path forward.

Kris Thompson