Friday, January 17, 2003
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Friday, January 17, 2003 |
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Day spa wants to help abused women From one of the most unlikely places to find discussion of domestic violence and abuse begins a story of helping hands and healing hearts. Monica Gaddy, owner of the Coweta Veranda European Day Spas, had been looking for a way to give back to the community in which she works. She researched many local and national nonprofit organizations over the past few years, and after much soul searching, Gaddy decided that her heart was leading her to the Community Welcome House, a shelter that aids women and children of domestic violence in Coweta County. Beginning this month and running through Dec. 15, 2003, both locations of the Veranda European Day Spa will be collecting donations for the Community Welcome House as part of a program that they've named "Welcome Touch." Donations will be collected in exchange for entries into a monthly drawing for one of Veranda's signature spa products or services. A $25 donation will net one entry, and for $50, donors will receive three entries into the drawing. One name will be drawn each month. A final grand prize drawing will be held in the month of December. The grand-prize winner will receive a year's worth of Veranda's spa services. One hundred percent of the money collected goes to the Community Welcome House. The goal of the program is to raise a minimum of $25,000. Gaddy hopes to quadruple that number. "As a woman, with a female staff and a predominantly female client base, I knew that women's issues were important to me and the people around me," said Gaddy. "While we do support many local and national charitable organizations, I felt it was important to step up and really make a difference in this community. I thought my business was the perfect compliment to the Community Welcome House because we have the resources to help raise money and awareness for the shelter." Money is exactly what the Community Welcome House needs. The shelter provides abused women with everything from a safe haven and personal effects to counseling and assistance in find ing jobs and housing. Women that seek shelter at the Community Welcome House stay for an average of 812 weeks. In many cases they show up with nothing more than the clothes on their back. The shelter can handle up to 15 women and their children at one time, and in 2002, they aided close to 100 women and children. If those numbers sound low to you, that's because the shelter only has enough resources to the help scratch the surface of the problem. In fact, every nine seconds a woman is battered in the United States. Georgia's domestic violence crisis lines received 62,736 calls in 2001. In Coweta County, more than 7,000 calls of domestic abuse were made to the county's police stations in 2001. The most alarming statistic of all is that only about one-seventh of all domestic assaults come to the attention of the police. "In order to take it to the next level, we need full time staff members that can aid these women day or night," said Norma Matthews, director of the Community Welcome House. "Many abused women feel like they can't leave an abusive situation if they have no place to go, especially if they fear for their lives and don't have a nickel to their name. Sometimes calling the police isn't an option they just have to get away immediately." A victim of domestic violence for almost 17 years herself, Matthews says, "If anybody hits you, get out then. The longer you wait, the harder it gets. No one has a right to hit another person." Evenings and holidays are the most prevalent times for abuse to occur and the shelter's current financial situation does not allow for someone to be on staff 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. In fact, it may surprise many people to learn that Superbowl Sunday is the one day each year when more domestic abuse occurs. Gaddy and Matthews plan to expand on the program later this year to provide spa services to the women at the shelter. Studies by the National Institutes of Health have demonstrated that a loving touch is necessary and effective in stopping negative emotions. "Things like hair cuts, styling, makeup, skincare, etc are therapeutic ways for us to help these women counteract the negative touches they've experienced in the past and regain their self-esteem so that they can get back on their feet and get a fresh start in life," said Gaddy. Donations are being collected at both locations of the Veranda European Day Spa. The Downtown Newnan spa is located at 11-1/2 Greenville Street just above Perennials 770-253-3341 and the Sharpsburg spa is on Ga. Hwy. 34 just east of Thomas Crossroads 770-251-6677. For more information on the "Welcome Touch" program, please call the Veranda European Day Spa at 770-251-6677. For more information on the Community Welcome House, including volunteer opportunities and making monetary donations, please contact Norma Matthews at 770-304-0966.
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