'Peace begins with me'

Círculo de la Hispanidad hosted its annual Walk to End Domestic Violence on the boardwalk last weekend. The organization offers bilingual support in the areas of domestic violence, housing, education, youth services and HIV and AIDS services.

The Salva Domestic Violence Program offered by Círculo provides crisis intervention, court advocacy and other support services to those affected by violence. It was among in the first in the state to offer a bilingual hotline for victims in Spanish and English.

Organizer Sarah Brewster, the chief director of services and operations at Círculo, said that the goal of the walk to raise awareness about domestic violence and educate members of the community. Many victims of abuse suffer silently, Brewster said, whether to try and protect themselves, their children or because they don’t think what’s happening to them warrants assistance.

“A big part of this is preventing it from happening,” Brewster said. “Our slogan is peace begins with me.” She added that some women who eventually come in say they were unsure of what a normal amount of violence and abuse should be, but Brewster staid that violence should never be tolerated.

The organization has conducted the walk for the past three years in October to coincide with Domestic Violence Awareness month. While the main mission is education, Brewster said the walks serve as a reminder of those that have been lost to domestic violence as well as a fundraising opportunity for the program, which has grown significantly in the last year. By August of 2015 the program had already reached as many people as they did in all of 2014, Brewster said.

This year’s walk took place on Oct. 17 after a short program in which Brewster and Assemblyman Todd Kaminsky spoke to the participants.

Círculo has offices in Long Beach and Hempstead and can also provide those in need with applying for temporary, permanent or transitional housing.