Denton County nonprofit Friends of the Family hosts events for Domestic Violence Awareness Month

(co-written with Camila Gonzalez)

October marked the beginning of Domestic Violence Awareness Month (DVAM), a period of time which seeks to inform the public about the effects of domestic violence and abuse. During this month, local nonprofit Denton County Friends of the Family (DCFF) has hosted several events to raise awareness.

DCFF, which opened in 1980, has been putting on events to bring attention to domestic violence in the area. The group provides a wide range of services year-round, from counseling and legal help to pantries and emergency shelter for victims of domestic violence. Honeycutt said that their biggest priority is to provide emotional support to the people who seek their services.

“Denton County Friends of the Family is dedicated to providing compassionate, comprehensive services to those impacted by domestic violence and sexual assault,” said Stephanie Honeycutt, Community Resource Coordinator of DCFF. “The main idea is bringing someone from crisis to confidence.”

Although similar organizations can be found in DFW, she said DCFF is the only nonprofit in Denton County that specifically combats domestic violence.

“In 2018, 585 people came and received services from DCFF in just the tiny [Route 380] corridor of Denton County, which is a smaller population,” Honeycutt said. “And that’s just that population. We see so many from Denton County every year. Of the 585, 325 were adults and 260 were children.”

Honeycutt said that, on average, one in four women and one in seven men are victims of domestic violence. Director of Marketing and Development Katherine Jahangiri began working with DCFF in July. She said that helping women is a priority for the group.

“We are truly a women-run organization helping women and children,” Jahangiri said. “Of course, we help men too, but the primary [group] is undoubtedly women.”

DCFF has hosted several events throughout October to commemorate DVAM, most of which are put on by their Prevention, Education and Awareness Program (PEAP). This group is focused on providing the public with information about sexual assault and domestic violence. On Oct. 1, they hosted the National Night Out Neighborhood Party and Community Conversation, an educational event meant to teach attendees about the early signs of domestic abuse and the ways in which the community can help victims of abuse. On Oct. 3, their Healing Through the Arts event hosted poets, musicians and visual artists.

Their most recent event was Dogs Against Domestic Violence, hosted on Oct. 17. Honeycutt said that this event was meant to shine a light on the pets who can also be victims of domestic abuse.

At the event, volunteer Director of Investigations Alex Johnston spoke about the significance of pets in abusive relationships. She said that pets will often be victims and signs of their abuse could often be visually identified. She works as a police officer and she said that she has seen multiple dogs in this situation.

“Dogs are going to communicate non-verbally, telling you that they’re being abused,” Johnston said. “They’re cowering, defecating on themselves [and] showing their bellies.”

Karissa Richards, who said she had been to other DCFF events in the past, came with a group of friends and her dog Frankie the Frenchie. Richards said she was abused by her ex-husband. She said that one of the friends that came with her to the event was married to and

abused by the same man, but they are now divorced. She said that events like this help create a dialogue about the issue of domestic violence.

“I think it’s important to raise awareness because a lot of people don’t talk about it because they’re scared,” Richards said.

Eryn Butler, who used to work for DCFF but now works for UNT’s Dean of Students, also came to the event. She said it is important for these events to reach out to different areas of the community, such as dog owners, so that they can learn about new issues while also being around something they love.

“I think it’s important to do advocacy year-round,” Butler said. “But specifically with National Domestic Violence Awareness Month, you have to reach people where you can find them.”

Honeycutt said that the organization hopes to educate the community by creating a public dialogue while providing people suffering from domestic violence with a network of support.

“We don’t want to stigmatize domestic violence,” Honeycutt said. “We don’t want to put shame or fear on it. For those that are victims, we want them to feel comfortable with coming and receiving services from us and knowing that they can get the help that they need.”

Jahangiri said that events like Dogs Against Domestic Violence and other DVAM programming provide a way for the community to get involved with their organization when they may not know how to do so otherwise.

“Events like these not only really raise awareness in a fun way, but they really help community members become more educated,” Jahangiri said. “[It] also just gives them visibility into the work that we do and actually lets them know that we are friends of their family.”