October is National Domestic Violence Awareness month and the Family Crisis Center Inc. is asking the community to join it in raising awareness by “Turning our Town Purple” on Monday,  Oct. 7.
“This is the day that communities and regions across the 50 states will culminate in a powerful statement celebrating the strength of battered women and their children,” said Laura Patzner, the center’s executive director.  “It’s day to remember those who have suffered and died from domestic violence, and celebrate the work being done to end violence.”
The Family Crisis Center based in Great Bend provides advocacy and support to all survivors and secondary victims of domestic and sexual violence, while encouraging social change through awareness, education and prevention, she said. “From our 24-hour crisis hotline to supportive services to professional training, we offer hope and healing for families experiencing domestic and sexual violence.”
Services are provided in Barton, Barber, Comanche, Edwards, Kiowa, Ness, Pawnee, Pratt, Rush and Stafford counties.
“Join us and take a Stand,” Patzner said. “Say ‘no more,’ wear purple ribbons, tie a purple ribbon to your antenna or around the big oak tree, wear your favorite purple outfit or shirt.”
Purple is the color used to raise awareness to the issues faced by battered women, men and their children.  “We are ‘turning our town purple’ in honor of all who have survived, those that continue to fight, and in memory of those that have lost their life to domestic violence.”
According to the Kansas Coalition Against Sexual and Domestic Violence, one in four women and one in seven men have been a victim of severe physical violence by an intimate partner. In 2007, 10.1 percent of adult females in Kansas reported domestic violence victimization. When extrapolated from the Kansas census this would result in 106,419 female victims during the year. 
Around 48 percent of both men and women have experienced psychological aggression by an intimate partner.
The center is located at 1924 Broadway Ave. in Great Bend. It can be reached at 620-793-9941, www.familycrisiscntr.org and facebook.com/FamilyCrisisCenter.
The 24-hour crisis line is 620-792-1885 or 1-866-792-1885.