With March being Women’s Health Month, we partake in our annual Run 4 Her event. While we are strengthening our own bodies as we run or walk, we raise money to support domestic violence survivors. Too many women have experienced the effects of domestic violence, forever impacting their physical and mental health. So, who are we running for? Who are they?
- They are our daughters we lost too early.
- They are our mothers who lost their lives protecting themselves and their children.
- They are our sisters struggling to get help.
- They are the women in our local communities, still hurting.
- They are the women whose partners prevented them from receiving medical treatment.
- They are the women who have been physically assaulted.
- They are the women who have been gaslighted as though they were never hurt.
- They are the women who have escaped heart-wrenching experiences.
- They are the women learning to trust again.
- They are the women fighting the urge to look over their shoulders, still scared.
- They are the women who thrive afterward while they still carry scars.
- They are the women who have created better lives for themselves and their children.
Our goal in Run 4 Her is to run 22 miles in 22 days to raise $50,000 for programs like our scholarships to get survivors back to school and their lives back on track, for survivors’ resources, support line services, and all aspects of our services. Some of us run to support survivors, getting them back to some sense of normalcy, and honor victims who were lost to domestic violence. Some of us run for ourselves as a way to show that we are strong regardless of the violent past we have experienced.
Years ago, this event was called “Angel Run,” representing the angels we lost who are now, undoubtedly watching over us all. Another way to support our angels is to purchase Run 4 Her merchandise at www.btsadv.org/store to help fund Break the Silence Against Domestic Violence and to just donate to support a runner in their journey. www.btsadv.org/donate
