ROGERS -- More than 40 people walked down West Chestnut Street chanting "Stop domestic violence" Saturday morning.
Some held signs. Some signs read "Violence is not the answer," while others read "In honor of my..." best friend, neighbor, mother, dad. Some participants carried life-sized red silhouettes honoring the lives of the women, men and children who were killed in domestic violence acts in Arkansas last year.
At A Glance
Upcoming Event
The NWA Women’s Shelter will host Fresh Start, an annual fundraiser, from 6:30 to 9 p.m. Saturday at 117 W. Walnut St. in Rogers. Thomas Arvid, the honorary guest, is an artist who is represented in more than 40 galleries in North America. The event will allow guests to meet him and win one of his paintings through an auction. Tickets are $50 and can be bought at www.nwaws.org or 479-246-9999.
Source: NWA Women’s Shelter
At A Glance
Women’s Shelter
The NWA Women’s Shelter relies on volunteers, financial contributions and donations of clothing and other items to serve victims of domestic violence. For more information on how to help, call 479-246-9999 or visit www.nwaws.org.
Source: Staff Report
The walkers changed their chant to "No excuse for abuse" when they turned the corner onto North First Street. Their voices got louder as they passed the farmers market in Centennial Park. Bystanders turned their heads with curiosity. Some took photos.
The less than a half-mile march, which began at City Hall, ended at Frisco Stage. Some people not with the walk followed participants to see what they were doing.
The NWA Women's Shelter and Rogers Police Department were kicking off its annual Silent Witness project.
The project is part of a national Silent Witness initiative in every state, said Rose Stanton, shelter outreach director.
"This project is designed to create awareness about the devastating effects of domestic violence in our community, the lives that are lost as a result of domestic violence and how this is a community issue," she said. "This is not a women's issue. This is an issue that affects men, women and children."
The march was added this year to make the awareness campaign more visible, Stanton said.
The 18 red silhouettes were placed on the stage. Four represented victims from Washington County. One was from Benton County. His name was Evan Fleck. He was killed March 3, 2013 by his wife after she discovered a picture of him embracing another woman, according to the information on the silhouette.
"Domestic violence is not at-risk specific," Capt. Hayes Minor with the Rogers Police Department told the crowd, which now was more than 50. It doesn't just happen on a certain side of town or to a specific group of people, he said.
The Rogers Police Department has seen 217 cases of domestic violence so far this year, according to Minor. It's more than this time last year, he added, but didn't provide the 2013 number.
Arkansas is ranked fourth in the nation for deaths related to domestic violence, said Rebecca Farrell, the shelter's executive director. The NWA Women's Shelter is one agency seeking to provide a safe haven for those who have experienced domestic violence, she said.
The shelter has 17 rooms but operates on the philosophy no one gets turned away. The shelter housed 65 people in July and August of last year, according to Farrell.
"We had to find beds, cots, places for them to stay," she said. "That also meant that we had to find food to serve three meals a day. All of our clients do not pay for services. It is all free to them. That is why the generosity and the support of our community is so integral to help us stop the violence that is occurring."
There are currently 44 people at the shelter, 24 which are children, Farrell said.
The shelter provides safety, basic needs, advocacy and assistance in developing safety plans, she said.
The red silhouettes will be placed throughout Benton County. They make the issue real, said Regina Gowl.
"This is a very real, in-your-face campaign," she said. "It doesn't paint a pretty picture. We don't mean for it to paint a pretty picture."
Gowl's sister, Natalie Pate Mathews, was killed Dec. 5, 2005, by an act of domestic violence. She was 34. Gowl shared her story at Saturday's event.
She and her daughters Eve, 13, and Betty, 11, lead the chants during the march.
"We want (people who see the silhouettes) to go away with knowing that this could be your neighbor, it could be your sister, it could be your child," Gowl said. "It's a tragedy that we don't want to continue."
Gowl added children's voices can be influential with their peers and impactful when they tell someone of abuse they've seen.
"This is where it starts, them understanding that they don't have to put up with abuse in any way, shape or form," she said.
The campaign will continue through October, which is national domestic violence awareness month, and conclude with a ceremony at 3 p.m., Oct. 23 at the Rogers Police Department.
There will be a release of 18 silver balloons celebrating the victims' lives and a release of 629 purple balloons representing the number of people the shelter housed in 2013.
NW News on 09/28/2014