By Amanda Lyons, Safe Harbor Child and Family Program Manager A national conversation is happening right now about families being separated from one another. It is incredibly emotional and fraught but also incredibly important. This conversation is equally important for…
The Lie: You are too far gone; you can never come back. She’s still there. That girl you used to know, that girl who you admired and loved? She’s still there, inside of you. That girl who was courageous, and…
In August of 2014, the doors of Safe Harbor’s Oconee County 16-bed emergency shelter for survivors of domestic violence and their children opened its doors due to the generous support of community members, churches, businesses and groups. Since its opening,…
Dear Friends, I’ll never forget my first weeks back at Safe Harbor after being on maternity leave in 2010. As a first-time mother with infant twins, I was overwhelmed and sleep-deprived. I remember telling my co-workers that I was glad…
Dear friend, I am a survivor of domestic violence. I didn’t know that I was being abused because my definition of abuse looked different. My husband pushed me and other seemingly small physical acts. Most of my suffering was verbal…
Dear friend, fellow survivor, and future advocate for justice, My history with domestic violence started at a very early age. I grew up in a small town of Anderson, SC and I had to witness my mother being beaten almost…
As the manager of grants at Safe Harbor, I spend a lot of time with statistics – both external statistics based on research and internal statistics based on our agency’s work. Often, both types of data anchor me into the…
Dear friend, The pattern of relationship violence began early for me. Starting with an abusive ex-boyfriend in high school, I fell into one abusive relationship after another as an adult, never quite sure how to end the abuse or who to reach out…
When I first sought counseling from Safe Harbor, I felt alone and hopeless. I was four years into a bad marriage that I truly believed would only end when my husband either killed himself or killed me. I was anxious,…
"Self-care is an act of self-love." While the holiday season is often filled with messages of joy and celebration, this time can bring on additional stress and pose unique challenges for survivors of domestic violence. Developing a plan for emotional safety can be a great…