The Women's Center

Success Stories

By Chanda Green - Editor / Publisher of Heartland Women Newspaper

This article was reprinted with permission from Heartland Women Newspaper.

Donna Wright is a strong woman. It's a strength born of adversity and nurtured at The Women's Center.

“I moved here from Tennessee 13 years ago, straight to the Women's Center, where I was reborn,” she said. “I was living with an abusive man, and I had reached a point where I was seething with anger. It wasn't safe for me or for him. I had to put some space between us.”

Donna knew that she needed to get away. A friend, who had attended SIU, told her about The Women's Center in Southern Illinois. Something clicked and Donna decided.

“I knew I had to relocate, but I didn't know where to go and what to do,” she said. “I called every day for weeks, and the women there would always say, 'Just come, Donna, just come.' The Women's Center sounded like a place to find some answers. But first, I had to find it. I had to look Carbondale up on the map. Then I gathered my courage and my belongings, loaded my four children in the car and left. I never looked back.”

She lived at The Women's Center, in the shelter, for about five months until they could help her find a job and an apartment.

“I was reborn at The Women's Center,” she said. “I died, and this new person was reborn. I was able to get back into life. I created a new family. I didn't know a soul when I arrived, but I made some of the closest friends of my life here, friends who gave me the emotional support I desperately needed, friends who helped me deal with the damage done to my kids and to myself.”

Now, Donna works with Franklin / Williamson County Human Services, as a clinical assistant for Project Safe, a program designed to help people who have substance abuse problems. “I help knock down barriers,” she said. And she's been on the board at The Women's Center for more than six years.

“I wanted to give back to the center, where I was reborn,” she said. “I can't imagine where I would be now if it wasn't for the center. No, that's not true. I know that I would be dead if I hadn't escaped from the abusive situation I was in. He would have killed me or I would have killed myself.

Donna's children are grown now. They're still struggling, but they're making it, she said. Her daughter is going to high school and has a part-time job. Her other daughter just moved out on her own. And her grandbaby will be 2 years old in June. Her boys are having a harder time finding their way, but Donna believes they'll make it. She believes in them.

“It's a healing thing, to tell your story, to believe that by telling your story, you may encourage others to break free of an abusive situation,” she said. “It's like my mom always said, 'You can get up if you can look up.' I looked up and saw hope at The Women's Center.”

The Women's Center, 610 S. Thompson St., Carbondale, has been providing free and confidential services and support to survivors of domestic and sexual violence in Southern Illinois since 1972. By joining together as a community, the Women's Center provided 5,697 nights of safe shelter last year, and reached 17,463 people with their prevention education and training programs.

“This is very much a grass-roots organization,” said Camille Dorris, director of The Women's Center. “We fill lots of gaps in the service area in seven counties. We serve men, too. And we have children's programs, as well. In fact, we were one of the first domestic violence programs in the state to recognize that children are victims, too. But mainly, it's women. It's all about empowering women at a time when they feel most powerless.”

Core services include providing 24-hour crisis intervention, shelter and transitional housing, counseling, legal and medical advocacy, therapy and support groups.

“We go to the emergency room and walk them through what's going to happen. We let them know about services, help them deal with the courts and teach them about collecting evidence. We help them understand that they have options, and tell them what those options are.”

“Volunteers go to court with survivors, hold their hand in the courtroom, stand between them and the perpetrator, whatever it takes,” she said.

It's difficult to list all of the services The Women's Center provides, everything from clothes and furniture to child care and medicine to art for empowerment classes and life skills training, teaching women the skills they need to survive.

”When someone comes to us with a problem, we just figure out how we can help,” Camille said. “Or we figure out where to go to get help, if they can't get it here.”

The Women's Center employs 40 full- and part-time staff members, some in the shelter, some in the main offices in Carbondale, four in the Marion office and one in the courthouse in Benton, a domestic violence legal advocate. But still, the center could not function without the dedicated assistance of its many volunteers.

Volunteers work in the shelter, assist residents, handle hotline calls, offer in-person crisis intervention, provide transportation, perform clerical tasks, work with children, and serve on committees. For more information on how you can reach out and make positive changes in the lives of others, to donate to this worthy cause, or to volunteer, call 549-4807, ext. 232 or 1-800-334-2094. If you are a survivor of sexual abuse or domestic violence and need help, call the 24-hour hotline at 1-800-334-2094 or 529-2324.

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