Want to give an award-winning Chanukah gift?
Your gift of Dear Evan Hansen tickets will win the prize! Only 16 seats left, side orchestra and lower loge, for the Sunday, March 3, 2019 2 pm performance.
Ticket information can be found here.
Thanksgiving Recipe for Support
Imagine a house full of friends and family, food in the oven and your partner criticizing all your hard work. For the 25% of women in our community who have experienced or are experiencing partner abuse, Thanksgiving and other holidays can bring added anxiety, burden and trauma. Not only is there a lot of preparation, there could be added stress from a controlling, demanding abuser, or worries that family members will find out. Even if someone is no longer experiencing abuse, holidays can be re-traumatizing or triggering for survivors.
If you notice that a friend or family member is unusually stressed, or observe their partner controlling or humiliating them, you can help by…
- privately sharing your concerns with the person who experienced the abusive behavior;
- listening, believing them and affirming their feelings; and
- not telling them what you would do. A survivor of domestic abuse is the expert of their experience.
Check out these tips or call the SHALVA helpline at 773.583.4673 if you are unsure of what to say in a situation. Let your friends and loved ones know that you are thankful for them this Thanksgiving, for their presence in your life and for their strength.
A Busy October
Thanks to our generous donors, the Community Outreach and Education staff reached almost 1,500 people during Domestic Violence Awareness Month.
- Attorneys attending our “Day in the Life” program observed a mock intake call, counseling session and meeting with our Legal Liaison. Attorneys said the program showed them how to treat clients with a sensitivity to domestic abuse.*
- Doctors at North Shore Evanston Hospital learned from Dr. David Levine about the many negative health effects of domestic abuse. Dr. Levine became a domestic abuse activist after one of his medical school classmates was murdered by her intimate partner.
- Over 1,000 challah bakers with The Shabbat Project received SHALVA educational materials.
- Future female Jewish leaders from the JUF FLEX program gained better understanding of domestic abuse from a former SHALVA client.
- Highland Park and Northbrook Rotary Club members learned about the warning signs of an abusive relationship.
Chanukah is almost here
Thank you to the Decalogue Society for bringing joy to our clients and their children during Chanukah.
*This program is supported by the Jewish Women’s Foundation of Metropolitan Chicago.
