Somerville Community Invited to Annual Vigil Honoring Victims of Domestic Violence

Mayor Katjana Ballantyne, the Somerville Commission for Women, and RESPOND, Inc. are honored to invite residents to join the annual Domestic Violence Vigil on Monday, October 30, 2023, commemorating Domestic Violence Awareness Month. This year’s vigil aims to remember those who lost their lives to domestic violence in the last year, celebrate survivors’ resilience, and recommit ourselves as a community to ending domestic violence.
 

“I am honored to invite the Somerville community to stand united against domestic violence and  offer our unwavering support to all victims,” said Mayor Ballantyne. “Domestic violence is a crime that often happens in the shadows, but by gathering together, we hope to offer a beacon of hope for survivors, and demonstrate Somerville’s commitment to creating a world where every home is a sanctuary.”

The vigil and community art-making event is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. at The Dojo @ Somernova (15 Properzi Way, Somerville). The event is free and all are welcome to attend. There will be American Sign Language (ASL) interpretation at the event.

"It's important for us to continually bring awareness to domestic violence because home should be a safe place," shared Stephanie Galaitsi, chair of the Somerville Commission for Women.

Domestic violence is a life-threatening public health and social justice issue that impacts one in three women and one in four men in the United States annually. 

“Abuse thrives in isolation,” says RESPOND CEO Victoria Helberg. “By gathering, we are not only taking a moment to commemorate those lives taken too early by domestic violence. We are also coming together to say that domestic violence has no home here in Somerville. We all have a role to play in ending domestic violence, and we can only do this together.”

For more information about the vigil, please contact Latoya Saulters, Commissions Coordinator at lsaulters@somervillema.gov or (857) 274-2719.

Persons with disabilities who need auxiliary aids and services for effective communication (i.e., CART, ASL), written materials in alternative formats, or reasonable modifications in policies and procedures in order to access the programs, activities, and meetings of the City of Somerville should please contact Adrienne Pomeroy in advance at 617-625-6600 x 2059 or apomeroy@somervillema.gov.  

Interpretation into any language is available upon advance request (at least seven days in advance) by contacting the SomerViva Office of Immigrant Affairs at somervillema.gov/ContactSomerViva or calling 311 at 617-666-3311.  

This event will be videotaped by the City’s GovTV team. Watch it on-demand with optional closed-captioning (select the CC icon) on YouTube.com/SomervilleCityTV. Or watch on cable TV at GovTV Comcast Ch. 22 and GovTV Astound (RCN) Ch. 13 & 613.  Videos generally post within one business day of recording.