Although our story is tragic and heartbreaking, thousands of families suffer from some form of domestic violence. Some of the stories are as tragic, some maybe more or less than ours but, Wild Heart is our Story and what we’ve had to endure as a direct result of a heinous act of domestic violence. We don’t have any magical way to eliminate this ugly and senseless tragedy of society, but we can do something about it!
What we do have is our story, relate to yours, and give you a direction to resources that can be of assistance to you. We had no idea of what laid ahead of us and the bullet that took our daughter’s life that cold January day is still ricocheting in our lives today. Unless you’ve lived it, you can’t relate to it. We are just a common family, common problems, common dreams, and common hopes. When we buried our daughter, we thought we’d be able to muddle through everyday life and somehow overcome the tragedy. Little did we know, that it was just the beginning of a nightmare that still is haunting us to this day. When you pay the ultimate price in a domestic violence situation, we believe family members also became victims. My daughter had two little girls within close proximity of the murder. They heard and seen things that night no child should ever have to live with. They truly became the “silent” victims as does many children. We must move from victims to recognizing that we are survivors!! As difficult as this may seem–we are called to be people of action!
Throughout our travels within the judicial system, the victims including our daughter who was silenced, are not treated as victims but the perpetrator gains mountainous “rights” many times at the expense of the victims left behind. We had no idea the subtle danger signs but what is more unbelievable is that there were people from his past that knew all about his pattern of control, manipulation, even abuse, but no one told us. “They didn’t want to get involved” That is far too often an issue in domestic violence situations. Family, friends, and people in general don’t want to get involved. It’s an ugly situation and a lot of the time very scary and dangerous. There are professionals trained to deal with all types of domestic violence situations and individuals. Educate yourself to the signs and resources available. Don’t try to handle a dangerous situation by yourself – go to a local resources for immediate help and assistance. The Silence of Domestic Violence must be shattered and the general public aroused to demand an end to this blight on families and children.
Domestic violence is so much bigger than you or I. If Wild Heart can save just one family or person from going through the agony and devastation our family has gone through, then we’ve done what we set out to do- Make A Difference. You can help. If you’re not in the areas of our organization and resources, find your local shelters and programs against domestic violence and volunteer. You can also contact us to connect with resources in your area.
Shattering the Silence of Domestic Violence
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