I just finished reading about the Chris Brown-Rhianna altercation and it saddened me. It has been almost thirty years since I worked in a domestic violence shelter and saw women come in bruised and beaten by their nearest and dearest. It usually took a lot of ingenuity for them to even get to the shelter. We advised them to plan for their escape if they called us in advance. A packed bag, a little money and toiletries helped a lot. We could provide those things if they didn't bring them.

I will always have a soft spot for Hardy's the fast food chain that is almost no more because they hired as many of the girls as they could and sent their left over roast beef back to the shelter. I still see a few Hardy's in Arkansas but they sold most of them to another chain.

We were always short of pajamas, night gowns and underwear.
It was seldom that the women got away with a suitcase. Much to my surprise, two women that I knew well logged in while I worked there. Both of them were married to friends of my former husband.

There is no socio-economic barrier to domestic violence. It occurs in both professional and blue collar families.
Volunteers are always needed. Children have to be cared for and transportation is always welcome.

Violence against women is not going to go away.