Can you help? A few weeks ago, we told you about Trina*, a recent arrival at the YWCA domestic violence shelter.
At the onset of the pandemic, she found herself stuck at home. With her abuser.
COVID has changed the domestic violence landscape. When shelter-in-place guidelines were first issued, we worried about women at home with their abusers. We worried that abusers would take this time of isolation and use it as a tool to keep their partners from seeking help.
And as COVID-19 restrictions eased, our fears were confirmed. We met other women like Trina. Women whose partners have used the virus as a threat. As a tool to make their lives feel a little more precarious: “If COVID doesn’t kill you,
I will.”
No fewer than three other shelter guests have reported hearing this threat from their abusers since the pandemic started, and we know many others in our community are also trapped. Can you secure a family’s safety with a gift to the YWCA while there’s still time?
YWCA Walla Walla is a safe shelter for women and their children. YWCA Advocates assist with protection orders, safety planning, housing, and other services that help people stay safe and rebuild their lives.
While these services continue, COVID makes it more challenging to reach and protect survivors. Our resources have never been spread so thin as we remain vigilant to keep everyone safe from the virus and from violence.
Here’s the thing. We need to raise $119,388. Can you make a gift today? With your donation, survivors can make it through this winter.
You can put the keys to safety — and to independence — in the hands of survivors, even during these unprecedented times.
Thank you,
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