The Pride and Gender Equity (PAGE) Center held a tulip planting ceremony in the commemorative garden at Shippensburg University on Oct. 2. 

The ceremony, which is held annually every October, informed SU students about the importance of Domestic Violence Awareness Month (DVAM). 

October is domestic and intimate partner violence awarness month. Regarding the symbolism behind the tulip ceremony, PAGE Center Director Miller Hoffman said, “It’s tied to activism, action and engagement, the work that we put in. Sometimes, we’re planting seeds. Sometimes we see immediate results, but a lot of times, we’re building towards something, and we’ll see the results down the road.”  

Domestic violence is the physical, emotional or mental abuse that one person uses as a sense of power over their intimate partner. According to Safe Family Justice Centers, it is important to educate the public about domestic and intimate partner violence because of factors like identifying behaviors, the understanding of where, why and how this occurs and the need for support. 

Two students in the SU Department of Criminal Justice, Victoria Carroll and Sarah Austin, explained the university’s demand for awareness. They said Shippensburg University offers several courses and certificates for students to complete based on victim awareness, domestic and intimate partner violence prevention and treatments, and services for advocacy.

“Currently, 68 students have completed the certificate,” said Austin. “Individuals like Victoria who complete the program intend to fulfill a career in victim advocacy helping to advocate for survivors of various abuse.” 

Another student in the Criminal Justice Department who did not speak at the event, Essence Ishmael, discussed the importance of the collaboration between the PAGE Center and Criminal Justice Department for Domestic Violence Awareness Month. 

Ishmael said, “It’s important for us to bring awareness to people who may not know what domestic violence is, or even how serious that it can be, not just for the cause of it, but also, as far as the victim aspect, what we do to help the victims.” 

One in four women and one in seven men are victims of domestic and intimate partner violence each year, according to National Domestic Violence Hotline. 

At the tulip ceremony, a survivor of domestic violence named Amanda F. spoke about her experience with domestic and intimate violence. She said, “My goal in sharing my story is to make a difference in the life of even one other person struggling with domestic violence. I say person because it’s not just women. Men can also be victims of domestic violence. 

“Physical wounds may heal, but scars from the emotional and mental abuse never go away. It’s like a stone being thrown into water: the rock is now a part of that body of water, changing the underwater landscape forever,” Amanda F. said. “When a rock hits the surface, it causes a ripple effect. That ripple effect is the trauma of all of the emotions, all the ways in which that person’s life has been turned upside down. The trauma will forever lie beneath the surface and is a part of them forever.” 

Hoffman, Misty Knight, director of Women and Gender Studies Program, and psychology professor Corrine Bertram read the number of people whose lives have been taken from domestic and intimate violence in Pennsylvania during the tulip ceremony — including their names. 

Nearing the end of the event, SU student Madi Shively read a closing meditation called “We Remember Them” by Sylvan Kamens and Rabbi Jack Riemer, which commemorates the lives that were lost due to domestic and intimate partner violence. 

Students, faculty and those who attended the event were provided the opportunity to plant tulip buds into the commemorative garden to show sympathy, togetherness and activism about domestic and intimate violence. 

As stated by DVSCP: “Believe all survivors. That is the first step in breaking the cycle.” 

For more information, help and access to campus resources, please contact the sources listed below. 

PAGE Center: 717-477-1790

Counseling Center: 717-477-1481

Office of Title IX: 717-477-1323

SU Police Department: 717-447-1444

Organizations outside of campus resources that are available can be seen below. 

YWCA Carlisle: 717-258-4324 or YWCACARLISLE.org

Domestic Violence Services of Cumberland and Perry Counties (DVSCP): 717-258-4249 or DVSCP.org

WIN Services: 717-264-4444 or WINSERVICES.org

Randi’s House of Angels Podcast about Domestic Violence: 

https://randishouseofangels.org/podcasts/

Purple Thursday, Oct. 17: #Every1KnowsSome1

Pennsylvania’s Lethality Assessment Program Donations: PCADV.org

Pennsylvania Coalition Against Domestic Violence (PCADV)

National Domestic Violence Hotline

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