The FrazierHeiby staff recently enjoyed a thank you lunch from CHOICES for Victims of Domestic Violence. It was a token of appreciation for selecting them as our client for our annual pro bono public relations program. Although domestic violence has gained some attention due to publicity around assaults by prominent sports figures, that's just our star-struck, voyeuristic awareness of the problem. The reality is that every 9 seconds in the US, a woman is assaulted or beaten, with 1.3 million women assaulted every year.
We are thankful that CHOICES is working to address the issue locally as the only domestic violence shelter in Franklin County, providing 24-hour crisis support, emergency shelter, legal advice and a wide range of educational and special programs focused on support and prevention.On the same day as our CHOICES lunch, we met with local media personality Mikaela Hunt who stopped by to learn about another program to which our staff members provide free PR counsel. Ruling Our eXperiences, or ROX, is a growing organization that equips girls with the knowledge and skills necessary to live healthy, independent, productive and violence-free lives.We shared with Mikaela these statistics from ROX - observations that disturb me as the father of a daughter:
- 83% of girls are bullied in school.
- 62% of girls dislike their bodies and are trying to lose weight.
- 30% of high school girls are in a controlling or abusive relationship.
As we talked it struck me that, without any specific intention, our firm chose to make an impact at two ends of a spectrum of similar issues: pieces of which many girls and women face every day.
Mikaela recently interviewed participants and provided exposure for ROX, highlighting the ways they use innovative and evidence-based programming to disrupt societal pressures on young girls. They begin by teaching 5th and 6th graders about relationships and about themselves, arming them with confidence, self-esteem and self-defense tools focused on their health, safety, education and empowerment. That good work can help young women avoid bullying, be confident in their own bodies and learn the awareness to avoid relationships that CHOICES addresses every day.We are hopeful that our strategic public relations counsel and support will elevate CHOICES' ability to effectively shelter, counsel, educate and free victims of domestic abuse. And we are excited that our social media and public relations support for ROX will help expand awareness and programming to make a real difference for young women in our community. Both groups have more work ahead to address their respective missions. Your volunteer support and financial donations can help them make an impact and we encourage you to join FrazierHeiby in these causes. You can learn more here: Choice for Victims of Domestic Violence Ruling Our eXperiences (ROX)