Domestic Violence Survivor Speaks Out About How She Survived a Shotgun Blast & How Domestic Violence Services Saved Her Life
Austin, Texas — The Texas Council on Family Violence (TCFV) is teaming up with the business community, legislators and thousands of Texans to support full funding for family violence services.
Today, thousands of postcards are being delivered to legislators to show how important full funding is for family violence programs. Advocates, allies and survivors of family violence use the color purple to symbolize their work to end violence within families.
Senator Jane Nelson joined TCFV, Verizon and Laura White, a survivor of domestic violence, at a news conference at the Capitol. White traveled from Houston to deliver a personal message of hope and perseverance.
After years of abuse, White was getting a divorce. Her husband called her and said to come over and he would sign the divorce papers. But, instead he pulled out a shotgun and shot her a point blank range. She says her heart froze when he said he was going to kill her and then kill himself. He said, “If I can’t have you, then no one can.”
She was shot in the stomach in November of 2009 and given a one percent change of survival. She endured more than a dozen surgeries and had to recover from the emotional scars of abuse. “If it wasn’t for domestic violence shelters in Texas, I would not be here today and I would not have been able to heal from the mental scars of abuse,” said White.
The Houston Area Women’s Center, a domestic violence shelter in Houston, helped her with counseling and support. The shelter in Houston and dozens of shelter’s across the state provide victims of domestic violence with the support they need and the legislature provides the necessary funding to help victim’s like Laura across the state of Texas.
Verizon is a national leader in the education and prevention of domestic violence. Today, the company joined the event to encourage more businesses to get involved in the prevention of domestic violence.
“Raising awareness of domestic violence and aiding in its prevention is a priority issue for Verizon,” said David Russell, Verizon Vice President of External Affairs. “Verizon is proud to partner with the Texas Council on Family and lend our voice to raise awareness about the plight of domestic violence victims to a wider audience in an effort to save lives.”
“Full funding is especially critical to ensure victims of domestic violence have a safety net,” said Gloria A. Terry, President of TCFV. “Last year, nearly 80,000 women, children and men found sanctuary from violence at domestic violence programs and at least 102 women died in Texas in domestic violence deaths. It is imperative that we fund the family violence services that will help prevent and eliminate this serious crime. The purple postcards come from people across Texas as a loud statement to legislators — Full Funding for Family Violence.”
Members of TCFV will then deliver thousands of postcards to legislators throughout the State Capitol. For more information about the purple postcard campaign you can log onto www.tcfv.org
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The Texas Council on Family Violence (TCFV), formed in 1978, is one of the largest domestic violence coalitions in the nation. TCFV promotes safe and healthy relationships by supporting service providers, facilitating strategic prevention efforts, and creating opportunities for freedom from domestic violence. www.tcfv.org