Mary Ann Roberts, Victim Witness Advocate

Glasgow, MT

Mary Ann Roberts passed away this month and she will be greatly missed by all. She was an inspiration to all who knew her. Mary Ann devoted her life to her family and believed her children are one of her greatest accomplishments.

Mary Ann was a modest women who did not acclaim all she did for women and children. She had a special gift, to help others, to advocate for those who could not or were not strong enough to make changes in their lives. Mary Ann gave women and children the inspiration, knowledge and power to heal, physically, emotionally and spiritually. Her work with domestic violence issues 20 years ago, led to positive legislative changes at a time when domestic violence was not highly recognized as a community problem. She advocated for victims and families and believed education was imperative to ending domestic violence.

In memory of Mary Ann, we will continue working to make changes within our communities on domestic violence prevention. We can make a difference, she did!

Mary Ann Roberts your smile and love will be missed.

New Staff

The Women's Resource Center (WRC) hired an Outreach Assistant to be a liaison for the satellite offices. Dolly Voxland will be working in Daniels and Sheridan Counties.

Dolly's hours are: Monday's 10:00 --5:00 Plentywood Office, Tuesday's and Wedneday's Scobey office

10:00-3:00. Winter hours may vary. To contact the satellite offices please call 783-7977 or 228-8401.

Fundraising

In April the Women's Resource Center was part of the Valley County Combined Campaign. The WRC assisted other groups with their activities, and raised $2220.95 Thank you to everyone who contributed and took part in the activities, you've made a difference. The funds are used to assist victims of violence in the community.

The Center and satellite offices have a variety of T-shirts, hats, postcards and pins for sale. Below is a sample of some of the items. Please stop by the office to take a look.

Illusion Theater

The Illusion Theater kicked off with a retreat weekend July 10^th and 11^th. The Illusion Theater is a peer education program using a popular educational model called TRUST (Teaching Reaching Using Students and Theater.) High school students perform Illusion's educational plays such as good touch-bad touch, hate crimes, and dating violence issues for the elementary, middle, and high schools in their communities.

The weekend was a huge success. Karen Gundlach, an education coordinator for Illusion Theater from Minneapolis, along with an assistant came for the weekend to train everyone. The training started at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday July 8^th, and ended at 4:00 p.m. on Sunday July 9^th. Everyone went to the Fort Peck Summer Theater Saturday night and saw the production of Annie, and then spent the night at the Fort Peck Hotel. The weekend was filled with long hours of training, however everyone managed to have a few minutes of fun!

Educational plays will be performed in schools in

Valley, Daniels, and Sheridan Counties. The performances will start in November. The highschool students involved have been busy rehearsing the plays and are doing a great job! If you have any questions, please call the Women's Resource Center at 228-8401.

Silent Witness Project

The Silent Witness National Initiative is a not-for-profit organization which began in 1990 in Minnesota to represent the women who were victims of domestic violence homicides. They created 27 life-sized red wooden figures representing all the women who were killed in acts of domestic violence in Minnesota in 1990. They called them the Silent Witnesses.

The mission is to promote peace, healing, and responsibility in adult relationships in order to eliminate domestic violence murders in the United States by 2010. October is domestic violence prevention awareness month and 47-50 states participate in special October events and tour their Silent Witness exhibits.

The Women's Resource Center will be taking part in the Silent Witness Initiative in October. Posters will be displayed throughout Valley, Daniels, and Sheridan counties as well as public service announcements. The Center will also be having a booth at the Health Fair in Glasgow on October 14^th from 7:00a.m. to 2:00 p.m. at the Civic Center. Please stop by and pick up a purple ribbon to support a violence free community.

***American women have more to fear from the men they know and once loved than from any stranger. (Jane Brody, New York Times)

***Thirty-four percent of the women homicide victims over age 15 are killed by their husbands, ex-husbands or boyfriends. (National Women Abuse Prevention Project)

***Children who grow up in violent homes have a 74% higher likelihood of committing criminal assaults. (Survey of Massachusetts Dept. of Youth Services)

***Each year, medical expenses from domestic violence total at least $3 to $5 billion. Businesses forfeit another $100 million in lost wages, sick leave, absenteeism and non-productivity. (Colorado Domestic Violence Coalition)

Stitching Away

October is also Breast Cancer Awareness month, and Vicki Braden-Nelson is busy making another quilt which will be done by October 2001. The quilt will feature squares with names of individuals who are survivors of breast cancer and those who have passed away. If you would like to purchase a square for a loved one, please call the Women's Resource Center at 228-8401.

Volunteers

Jennifer Brown, a local Glasgow youth is the new Youth Leader for the WRC. She is volunteering her time to help out in the office. She is involved in the Illusion Theater and will be assisting the program coordinator with the project. Jennifer will also be coordinating youth related activities and helping out with the newsletter.

Jennifer's Topic

Bulimia nervosa is a disorder of both the mental and physical states of an individual. If the patient is willing, it can be treated, but the individual is mostly responsible for the treatment. Bulimia has causes and symptoms like any disease.

A person who is bulimic tends to consume large quantities of food in a short time. Afterwards they feel guilty and feel the need to "cleanse" the body, in which they either vomit or turn to laxatives.

This cycle can continue endlessly until someone intervenes. Bulimia can be controlled through treatment and support for the individual.

Written by Jennifer Brown, Youth leader

Upcoming Events

***In November Women's Forum Groups speak about their organization and how to get involved. Please call the Center for more information.

***The WRC is designing mugs with tea and coffee items in them. Look for these on display in November.

***Presentations will be done in September and October to the Senior Citizen Centers in Valley, Daniels, and Sheridan Counties.

***Illusion Theater will be doing presentations starting in November

***There will be a brown bag lunch at the Women's Resource Center on October 17^th from 12:00 to 12:45 featuring a speaker on breast cancer awareness.

Women's Resource Center

114 5^th Street South

Glasgow, MT 59230

Volunteer Opportunities

The WRC has several volunteer opportunities such as:

*One-on-One Advocates

*Crisis Line Advocates

*Fundraising

*Grant Writing

*Public Speaking

The WRC values and appreciates the dedication and commitment made by volunteers. Some personal benefits through volunteering at the WRC are:

**Opportunities for training in and out of state

**Acquiring job skills

**Becoming acquainted with the social service community

If you are interested or know of someone who is interested in volunteering please contact us or stop by the office. A new volunteer training session will be held October 12^th at 7:00p.m. at the Women's Resource Center, across from True Value.