Last week, Harmony House Domestic Violence Shelter hosted a community candlelight vigil  at Lafayette Square to honor those who died last year due to domestic violence incidents. The vigil honored 96 people who passed last year in Georgia, and one person who died in Troup County.

October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. According to the National Resource Center on Domestic Violence, domestic violence is a “pattern of abusive behaviors — including physical, sexual and psychological attacks as well as economic coercion — used by one intimate partner against another (adult or adolescent) to gain, maintain, or regain power and control in the relationship.”

Domestic violence is not easy to talk about, but we should be able to discuss it. Someone died last year in our county due to violence.

We should be able to recognize abuse and learn how to intervene in case it’s happening to someone we know.

There are multiple resource in the community including Harmony House to Twin Cedars’ Darkness to Light program which educate ways to prevent abuse.