I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving week and are able to share the holiday with loved ones.
This week I am highlighting domestic violence survivor, Allison O’Malley. She has put her past experiences as a witness to and victim of abuse into a passion for helping victims of domestic violence. Alli is the Executive Director of RESOLVE of Greater Rochester, Inc., an organization dedicated to intervening and preventing domestic and sexual violence against women.
I have the privilege to know this amazing woman. Her strength is inspiring and dedication to helping abused women is motivating.
Here is some background on Alli:
As a female survivor of domestic violence -- both as a child witness and in my own first marriage -- I found it very difficult to want to trust men. But, I was still a young woman when I divorced my ex-husband and I longed for intimacy, which meant I had to make a choice. I could choose to protect myself from being hurt, literally and figuratively, and be alone; or I could choose to take a risk and try again. Looking back on those days, I am grateful that I found the courage to take a risk and I am grateful for the good men who crossed my path and helped to restore my faith in mankind.
For those of you who are still hurting from domestic violence, please know that it is possible to find real love after having been abused. And take heart in hearing that there are actually far more good men, then there are those who want to control and harm you. It took me a while to take the leap and attract a good man. Before he entered my life, I had to believe that I deserved a good man; which necessitated that I spend some time alone and focus on my own healing. Because I knew that replacing the "bad guy" with a "good guy" was not the balm that my broken heart needed. I had to heal first, to restore myself to wholeness, so that I could offer my whole self to my new partner authentically. Along my healing journey, I found that male colleagues who valued me as a professional and as a friend were instrumental in helping me to see my own worth. I will be forever grateful to those men. I have been married to my husband for 16 years. Through the love and compassion of this truly good man, who loves me at times in spite of myself, I've found joy and peace and maybe most importantly forgiveness.
Blessings,
Alli
Alli was featured in Rochester Woman Magazine in an article called “RESOLVE: Domestic Violence: What do men have to do with it?” Click here to read the article.
Thank you Alli for supporting women dealing with this prevalent social issue.
Remember, if we can help just one woman, we’ve done our job.
Katelin Maloney