Page 15 - MidWeek - Sep 28, 2022

SEPTEMBER 28, 2022 MIDWEEK 15
po Te ye
its gr fa res the nit pe fa me cu lei po
hel th an tic of
D de ag ag gr it co
th len ha fo D en ch su
se re be ca an sur in of ke re
Helping others lead an
lives that are free from abuse is the goal of Nanci Kreidman and her team of advocates
at Domestic Violence lie
Action Center.
T STORY BY Tasha Mero PHOTO BY Anthony Consillio
ake a look around nying clients to court or pro- is unique, the center offers —youmaybeinthe viding safe housing, DVAC, a personalized approach. Its presence of someone which was founded more than staffers — who represent a
who is silently suffering from 30 years ago, supports its cli- melting pot of ethnicities —
domestic violence. It could be a friend, family member, co-worker or even the person standing ahead of you in line at the supermarket.
entele throughout the entire process. Thanks to quality and culturally sensitive pro- grams, the center, according to Kreidman, aims to provide safety and self-sufficiency for survivors and their children.
speak various languages such as Japanese, Korean and Fili- pino, to name a few.
Whoever it may be, Do- mestic Violence Action Cen- ter exists to help.
“What goes on behind closed doors spills out into the marketplace, into busi- nesses, into schools and into churches,” she says. “When we say that safe families are at the core of a healthy com- munity — we really mean that. We can’t live in a com- munity that is thriving and healthy if we don’t have safe families at its core.”
“We recognize that the most useful support and help is of- fered by somebody who speaks your language, and under- stands your community norms and your community values,” Kreidman explains.
“Our team of advocates help survivors on their long and tangled journey to safety. It’s a very different path for each person,” says CEO and co-founder Nanci Kreidman. “We just encour- age people to consider their journey and their right to live free and safe.”
It’s an unfortunate reali- ty that victims of abuse can be of any age. According to DVAC’s website, 1 in 3 teens in the United States has experienced physical, sexual, emotional or verbal abuse from a dating partner. To support Hawai‘i’s young
Nanci Kreidman (left) helped found Domestic Violence Action Center more than three decades ago. Over the years, wi she’s found willing allies in her fight to end domestic abuse in the islands, including former Honolulu Mayor Jeremy Harris. Domestic Violence Awareness Month is in October. PHOTO COURTESY DOMESTIC VIOLENCE ACTION CENTER co
Whether it’s answering ho- tline phone calls, accompa-
Being that each abuse case
SEE PAGE 18
p e
aT
a m
y r m
l
u d “
a d e
s V v o e a w
Km a
v
r V a i
r a
l o
c
pD
p a
St l