Domestic Violence Awareness Month recognized by Warriors

• The Nest offers shelter to those seeking refuge from a domestic violence situation

Players on the Ruidoso Warriors football team fought for a big win on the field Friday night against Hope Christian High School.

They hoped for a win of another kind by partnering for the second year with Help End Abuse for Life, Inc. and the Nest, Lincoln County’s first and only domestic violence shelter for a “Friday Night Purple Light,” event aimed at gaining attention for Domestic Violence Awareness Month. The game featured a memorial balloon release, and purple stress footballs were handed out to spectators.

“There are several purposes of Domestic Violence Awareness Month,” Nest executive director Gwyn Kaitis said.  “The first is to raise awareness of the epidemic that is intimate partner violence. The second is to celebrate those who have survived and all the work they have taken upon themselves to end the violence in their lives and the lives of their children and pets. The third is that this month is an opportunity to applaud those advocates who work to aid survivors and strive to end domestic violence.”

The Nest has many traditions honoring Domestic Violence Awareness Month, including a private candlelight vigil at the shelter each year for residents and staff. For several years, Ruidoso’s Parks and Recreation Department staff has participated in the celebration by lighting trees in purple at the “Big Y” on U.S. 70, as a reminder of the importance of ending domestic violence and increasing the awareness of those affected, she said.

According to a 2010 report by the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, most women who experienced rape, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner, first experienced that abuse between the ages of 18 and 24. One in five of those women was first abused between the ages of 11 and 17, Kaitis said. Because of those staggering statistics about abuse happening to young people, it is important to team up with groups like Ruidoso Warrior Football, she said.

“We want to raise awareness among middle and high schoolers and their parents about this serious problem,” Kaitis said. “We all have a role in ending violence against women and girls. Stand up, speak up, call 911 if you hear anything, Give out the number to the Nest to anyone you suspect is being abused.”

If you or someone you know is in an abusive relationship, contact The Nest for help and resources on the toll-free hotline at 866-378-6378. To learn more about HEAL & the Nest, visit their website at www.helpendabuseforlife.org.