As we celebrate the end of one year and look forward to a new year, I want to thank you for your friendship and support.  Thanks to YOU, Harmony House sheltered 858 adults and children in 2019 and served another 129 survivors through our community outreach program.  YOU enabled these victims to become survivors; to break the chains of physical and emotional abuse and regain hope and independence.

And, for the first time since 2010, we sheltered fewer people in 2019 than in the previous year!  In 2018, we sheltered 868 individuals and in 2019, we sheltered 858; a decrease of ten people.  This is cause for celebration because in every previous year since 2010; we have seen significant increases in the number of people sheltered at Harmony House.  Though it’s too soon to know if the drop in numbers is the beginning of a trend and is due to awareness efforts like iCare, as well as improved access to services through our community’s Family Justice Center, it’s still significant.  In this season of new beginnings, it gives us reason to hope that maybe, just maybe our community is turning the corner on this horrific epidemic.

But that doesn’t mean we can take our eye off the ball. We must work harder than ever to raise awareness about the red flag warning signs of unhealthy relationships and to help those impacted by domestic violence by providing access to shelter and supportive services such as employment readiness and permanent affordable housing.  In 2020, Harmony House will focus on providing more prevention education programs in an effort to teach vulnerable young people about healthy relationships and the warning signs of intimate partner violence.  We’ll also be working to enhance and expand our employment readiness and housing assistance programs, all the while continuing our core emergency shelter and support programs.

Thank you for your commitment to our mission and for your continued support. YOU are the wind beneath our wings and together we can and will make a difference.

Happy New Year to you and yours!

Harmony Heroes Job Description

Harmony Heroes are special individuals who are nominated by Harmony House supporters and selected by Harmony House’s Development Staff and/or the Harmony Heroes planning committee. Harmony Heroes save lives by raising funds to support the services of Harmony House. In this friendly competition, the Harmony Hero who raises the most funds is “caped” during the 2020 Purple Party on April 28, 2020.

A total of 5-8 individuals (women and men) will be featured prior to and on event day for individuals to “vote” for them online through donations. Each vote = $1.00.

The ultimate “Harmony Hero” who raises the most funds will be revealed and “caped” at the Purple Party 2020 on April 28^th!

Nominations for Harmony Heroes will be open online from January 1 to January 31.  Nominate yourself or a fellow community member who would be a great fit!

Harmony House’s Development Staff and/or the Harmony Heroes planning committee will select the 5-8 individuals who will officially compete to be the “Harmony Hero.”

Harmony Heroes will agree to participate in the following volunteer duties between early February and April 28^th:

• Have your promotional photo taken at Harmony House on the designated day.
• Raise funds within your network—share your goal on social media, share why Harmony House’s mission is important to you, etc. Your story is powerful!
• Work with Harmony House staff in marketing efforts related to the Purple Party 2020’s “80s Movies” theme. You’ll help generate buzz that gets people interested in attending! The more people we have at the Purple Party, the more dollars we raise to support domestic violence survivors!
• Dedicate a minimum of 10 hours per month to raising funds and awareness.
• Attend the Purple Party on April 28^th from 6 to 9 and help generate excitement during the evening.

Nominate yourself or someone you know who would make an excellent Harmony Hero today at http://bit.ly/Heroes2020! Nominations are open until January 31, 2020 at 5pm.

“I decided to come to HH for both my daughter and my safety. My husband has been controlling and abusive our entire 10 year relationship. It wasn’t until my child was born though that I began to realize his behavior was so ingrained he would never change and it was unsafe for us there. My breaking point was during a separation, we were still living in the home together, he lost control again. In the middle of the night he exploded in rage, throwing things, breaking things, and harming our pet kitten to the point he was covered in blood. I locked myself and my daughter in our bedroom but he broke past the lock the next morning and I knew we weren’t safe. I had heard of HH but never wanted to go and take resources from people who needed it more. I finally decided I was in need.

HH has been a tremendous help to both me and my daughter. I was fortunate enough to already be separated from him and have some things together already but for the things I didn’t have HH has been able to supply. More than anything HH has helped with giving us a safe, quiet place to live and recoup. We went from a home filled with constant tension, tiptoeing around in fear, and yelling that kept us tense and unable to even think to a place where we could catch our breath for a moment and get our life together again. It’s more difficult than I can describe, losing everything at once, but being able to have some semblance of peace has help us be able to find ourselves.

The resources and support we have been given at HH have been massive as well. Finding housing is difficult in our situation but I was given help finding ones we could go to. The emotional support has been tremendous. Having caring people who are on your side when you feel so isolated from the world was cathartic. My child has benefited immensely from having a calm safe place to live. The playground and play room have made it easy for her, she feels as if we are on vacation, which is perfect because her comfort is one less thing I have to worry about while pulling our lives together. At Easter she was given a Easter basket and I cannot describe the pure joy on her face when she realized the Easter bunny had visited her here. It made both of our hearts happy and full.

Today I am doing much better. I can think, I can rationalize again. I feel it’s difficult for others to understand just how impossible it is to even rationalize your own internal thought process when you are constantly being manipulated. You can’t even make simple decisions so massive life changing ones are near impossible. I am finding our own permanent housing, which is a beautiful feeling. I am able to actually benefit from therapy instead of using it for survival since I’m not in a constant state of fight or flight. I can see a future for us clearly now. I know it’s not perfect and it’s not where I had wanted to be in this stage of my life but its freeing and blissful to be able to plan a life for us now, absent of the abuse and wholly our own happiness. I had attempted to be in this position for a very long time but was unable to do so while still living with my abuser. HH has made that possible and I will forever be grateful at having such a tremendous resource to help us.”