FARMINGTON — Safe Voices will provide opportunities for the community to become more aware and show support for survivors of domestic abuse during Domestic Violence Awareness Month, beginning Wednesday.
Carmen Blandin Tarleton, one of the world’s first face transplant patients, will talk about her experience with domestic violence from 6 to 8 p.m. Oct. 1 at the Franco-American Heritage Center in Lewiston. More information is available by calling 795-6744.
Safe Voices will host its annual memorial vigils throughout Androscoggin, Franklin and Oxford counties to honor those who have lost their lives to domestic violence, offer hope to those still facing abuse, and to celebrate all survivors. The vigils begin at 6 p.m. Monday, Oct. 6, rain or shine.
The Franklin County vigil will begin at the University of Maine at Farmington’s Olsen Student Center in Farmington and will include a short candlelit procession throughout downtown.
Guest speakers will share their thoughts on the issue and a speak-out will follow. The vigil is open to the public.
For those on social media, Safe Voices is offering a new way to participate in the vigils this year. Messages of hope and awareness to survivors of partner violence can be tweeted using #digivigil. Tweets will be live-streamed and shared with attendees.
Large, purple bows adorn bridges through Safe Voices’ Crossing Bridges program. The purple bow campaign, endorsed by the Maine Department of Transportation, has expanded to all three counties.
Through support from Franklin Savings Bank, Safe Voices will distribute copies of Kathryn Otoshi’s “Zero and One” to 18 public libraries throughout the tri-county area as part of its ‘Community Heroes: Knowledge is Power’ library campaign.
Oct. 15 is Wear Purple Day. Residents can dress to express and can share photos via Safe Voices’ Facebook page, or contact the local community educator to take photos of a group that day.
Paint Your Profile Purple, happening Oct. 22, is a chance for the social media community to raise awareness about the issue by changing their cover photos and profile pics to purple for the last week of the month. For more information, like Safe Voices on Facebook and follow it on Twitter.
Information about these and other events can be found at safevoices.org or by contacting Stacie Bourassa at 778-6297 or sbourassa@safevoices.org.
If you or someone you know is in need of support, call Safe Voices’ 24-hour helpline at 1-800-559-2927.
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- Purple ribbons adorn local bridges as part of Safe Voices’ ‘Crossing Bridges’ campaign against domestic violence during October, Domestic Violence Awareness month.
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