Today, I met 2 little girls. 5 and 7 years old. Back to school in 2nd grade and kindergarten. The little one talked to me the most. Of course, she told me about my unicorn hair, my gemstone necklaces (diamonds!), my union armband (haha!), and then my tattoos. This little girl, among other things, told me that she often cried. I replied that I did too, and that it was okay to cry. Then she told me about her daddy. Her unkind daddy... This little girl started kindergarten, her 1st school year, without coming home. Why not? Because right now, she's living in a Women's shelter with her sister and brother. I haven't been able to talk to her mom. But bravo to her. Thanks for her courage to seek help, to get out of the relationship. In doing that, she is ensuring a future for her children....and for herself. This little girl is certainly in a whirlwind of emotion, but she won't sink.

Several years ago, I worked in a small community group that helped victims of conjugal violence and later as a social worker at wellfare. I met women who arrived at the shelter and had to apply for financial aid as a last resort because they had nothing... often nothing at all. I helped many with words, a smile, a joke, a touch on the arm to give them back their humanity. I met women from all walks of life, mothers who had been prisoners at home and professionals, including a lawyer who practiced family law. Each of them, strong women because to survive this violence you need incredible strength...

We posted the SOS-INFOs on the bulletin board of the shelter. Several women read them and asked for copies. They find them clear and relevant because they recognize their experiences. -Intervener at the shelter for women victims of intimate partner violence.

Thanks to the «It's not violent» website, I was able to increase my student's awareness of the subtle violence found in intimate partner violence, which is often banalized and ignored. My students really liked a first workshop in class and I then organized thematic lunchtime meetings for the other four vignettes.

I had been working for three years with a family whose child had severe behavioural problems. Nothing was working. My usual methods weren't working. The mother was discouraged and seemed increasingly depressed. On one visit when the father was not present, I noticed that the mother seemed to fear the father's reaction if the child did not improve. I asked her about this and from her answers I realized that she was a victim of violence. I was uncomfortable because I wasn't sure how to intervene in this sensitive situation. I called SOS and was offered intervention support and tools to share with my team.

I'am a social worker and I always keep the SOS-INFO brochures in my office because it explains what intimate partner violence is all about. Since I am not a specialist on the subject, these documents allow me to receive ongoing training on the problem, but also to be able to better evaluate or explain it with the people I meet.