“You have no idea how meaningful this is, that all of you are here tonight. You are strangers to me. I do not know you, yet I feel your warmth, your love and your hope for me. I can’t put into words how powerful this is.”
~ A Resident of the Nest at the 2011 Candlelight Vigil
For the sixth consecutive year, HEAL hosted the Day of Unity Candlelight Vigil inside the Nest Domestic Violence Shelter.
Luminaria after luminaria lined the kitchen counter, their candles flickering softly and creating an atmosphere of peace. Residents of the Nest – both Moms and their kids – decorated each luminaria with tributes to people they knew who are survivors, and to family members and friends who have died at the hands of someone who once claimed to love them. These were tributes to the power of the human spirit.
These images were given life on the luminarias. They were not haunting. This night, this candlelight vigil, was a celebration. It was joyful. Hopeful. Encouraging.
The ceremony opened with HEAL Executive Director Coleen Widell explaining the Day of Unity is celebrated the first Monday of each October, which is National Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Advocates and survivors gather on this day to honor survivors. It is a time to also mourn the men, women and children whose lives have been snuffed out because of domestic violence. “This evening, across America, advocates and survivors just like us are coming together to celebrate their work to end violence. Tonight in this room we are joined by survivors, Nest residents, HEAL Board Members, local faith leaders, our children and our husbands and wives. We are all an integral part of the solution,” Widell said.
Pastor Sal Lopez shared his understanding of family violence through the eyes of a child. He encouraged the Mothers in the Nest to be strong and make safe decisions for their children. Lopez offered himself and his church as a support system to the Mothers. He closed his presentation with a special prayer for the women and their children victims, which he delivered in Spanish.
Pastor Tim Gilliland reminded the audience that Jesus was a victim of violence too and that God wants all people, and especially the Nest residents, to live in peace, not in violence. Gilliland reinforced that violence was not the fault of the victim and told the survivors the entire community is proud of their courage.
According to Julie Gilliland, HEAL Board Member and minister at the Church out of Church, the prayers offered at the Vigil are intended to lift the spirits of women suffering from domestic violence and encourage them to seek safety and refuge. She too reminded the residents that God would not approve of the violence perpetrated against them. After the Vigil, several women in the shelter asked that Julie return for the Nest Faith Hour, a weekly voluntary program that connects local pastors from the Ministerial Alliance with residents of the shelter who want to discuss faith issues. The Faith Hour was started by past board member Deacon Bob Racicot.
Six survivors also participated in the Vigil. Many survivors told their stories to the audience. Several residents and staff members read poems about domestic violence and two women joined together to sing “Behind the Wall“, a song about domestic violence by Tracy Chapman.
Miss Albuquerque Outstanding Teen and local high school student, Juliann Lamb, also attended. Domestic violence prevention is her platform issue, just as it was when she was crowned Miss Ruidoso Teen in 2010. Lamb has worked closely with the Nest on several initiatives.
Celina DeLaGarza encouraged the residents to move forward with their lives. She said, “I am not going to share my story of all the horrible things he did to me. That is in the past. You have to start from today, look forward and every time you look in the mirror, say to yourself “I can do this. I am worth it.” Because you are.” DeLaGarza is the Manager of HEAL’s Sweet Charity Resale Boutique.
The Annual Candlelight Vigil is closed to the public, due to confidentiality. Invitees included exclusively the residents of the Nest, the HEAL family and Pastor Lopez. Dan Francis, husband of HEAL Office Manager Susanne Francis, was very moved by the ceremony. He felt the ceremony should be moved to a public location next year “so people in our community, who are so supportive of the Nest and its residents, can participate and really “get the feel” of what these women go through. There wasn’t a dry eye in the house tonight…for a reason.”
For information on the free and confidential services of the Nest’s Domestic Violence Shelter, please call (575) 378-6378 or “like” HEAL and the Nest on Facebook.
Pictured are luminarias made by the children at the Nest for the annual Candlelight Vigil.