At first Andy and Sarah , 4 year old twins, were confused and frightened when they came to stay with.us. They found it hard to settle and sleep that first night and kept asking “when is the Dad going to leave? Why is he still here?
Andy and Sarah only knew “the Dad” to be violent and something to be avoided. To them you didn’t go to sleep until you knew “he” was gone and out of the house. No amount of assurances seemed to make a difference but eventually through sheer exhaustion they managed to drift off to sleep. The next night sleep came a little easier but in the morning we noticed someone had been sick in the bathroom.
When asked who was sick during the night Sarah and Andy were silent. Telling them they were not in trouble didn’t make a difference. However, explaining we wanted to help them if they were sick triggered a flurry of questions. Sarah and Andy wanted to know Why would we want to know who was sick and Why would we want to help them if they were sick. They could not understand our interest at all.
Sarah and Andy had little trust in adults, in their short lives they had not known much kindness or experieiced care or help when they were sick, hungry or cold. Fending for themselves, avoiding “the Dad” and storing food in their room was their only concern.
With a faraway look in her eye Sarah would sometimes say “Maybe my mum will come home when she gets fixed up at the hospital … but only if it’s safe” .
We learned being safe meant so much to these little ones.
We learned women and kids had a better chance of staying together if they had support and a place to stay where they could feel safe. Andy and Sarah helped inspire us to do something to help woman and children of domestic violence, it’s why we created Our Safe Place.
Break the silence and be courageous in speaking against domestic violence.
Even the smallest financial contribution goes along way in helping provide safe places for victims of domestic violence.
Step up and get involved on the front-line by offering your own safe place for those affected by domestic abuse.
Our Safe Place is a charitable initiative by LAHAT Foundation Pty Ltd | ABN 74 670 634 312
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