"In love, there is no violence" - Sanctuary for Families

For several years I have become increasingly vocal about my passion for raising awareness about gender violence. As a woman and a human being, I find these issues incredibly important to recognize and deal with. I have spent countless hours reading books and articles that cover these topics, I have dedicated my time to being a Relationship Peer Educator on campus, and wherever there is a feminist discussion, 9 times out of 10 I will be in attendance. It was not until the internship application process back in May that I realized I could become even more involved.

During this internship process, I had no idea what to expect. I did not know exactly what I wanted to do during my summer nor did I know exactly which internship would best serve my need for great experience, which is something that obviously every job wants. Along my search, I came upon an application for an organization called Sanctuary for Families, which is based in New York City. I had never heard of them before, but as I read and reread their online application form through my school’s career website, I was immediately intrigued and thrilled.

Sanctuary for Families is a non-profit that’s mission is geared to raising awareness and preventing forms of gender violence; specifically domestic abuse, forced marriage, Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) and human trafficking. They have multiple shelters throughout the city, provide clinical and legal services, and provide childcare. They also provide Economic Empowerment Programs, which allow survivors of domestic violence to learn to become financially independent. Back in the fiscal year of 2014-2015, Sanctuary increased their impact by 50 percent and served thousands of adults and children. They continue to grow today.

I came into Sanctuary knowing a good amount about gender violence and the ways in which is affects our society, but I walked out of this internship knowing even more, especially in the ways people can help survivors of gender violence. Sanctuary not only allowed me to exercise my skills within their development department, but they also offered me multiple opportunities to attend learning sessions and discussions. I took advantage of these sessions as often as I could and through it, I gained a deeper understanding of Sanctuary’s services and how gender violence affects everyone, regardless of race, ethnicity, religion, gender or sexuality.

I also got to meet so many inspiring people. My supervisors, Emily and Lauren, were both so gracious, kind and helpful throughout the entire summer. Not only did I feel welcome, but I felt like I was truly part of the team. Everyone who works there, both men and women, all work there knowing that they are doing something good. They know the mission and they work hard to see that it is achieved every single year. That in itself was one of the most inspiring parts of this internship. In a world where there is so much violence and horror, these things are met by giving and selfless people who dedicate their time to fight against it.

Finally, I would like to share a brief anecdote that I surely will never forget. During Sanctuary’s annual Zero Tolerance Benefit, which I helped out with, there were multiple speeches given throughout the night. One of them stood out to me, and it was a speech given by a former client of Sanctuary who now works for them. She got up on stage, told her story of domestic abuse, and told everyone in the audience about how she overcame these tremendous obstacles and got to where she is today.

The speech itself was beautifully stated and poignant, but one of the greatest parts was when every single person in the audience stood up and applauded her for what (wonderfully) felt like forever. I admit that I almost teared up when I saw this because I felt what everyone else in that room was feeling that night and that was that Sanctuary for Families, like so many non-profits, is a blessing and I am endlessly thankful for being given the opportunity to work there.