Thanks for visiting my Hot Chocolate Run fundraising page! On December 2, I'm running or walking in this year’s Hot Chocolate Run. This great event raises funds for Safe Passage, the organization addressing domestic violence in Hampshire County.
     This event I chose, also hits home for me personally. I recently discovered that my previous marriage that I am now currently going through a divorce due to domestic violence. It's interesting how I always associated domestic violence with physical abuse, how I related the two with physical violence. It all began with me picking up the Avon brochure they support for domestic violence. This brochure hit me like a TON of bricks when I began reading it. Mind you when coming across this booklet I almost tossed it out as I was going through my avon order. Something in my conscience told me to open it up and read. Man I sure was floored when reading the different catagories that talked about the different types of abuse that falls under the domestic violence guidelines. This booklet also explained why people like me deal with the situation for so long, even sometimes never leaving the situation. I am so fortunate that again, something inside me decided enough was enough. Realizing that my marriage was far from the norm and very unhealthy for many reasons. I strongly encourage if you are or know of anyone that may or is in a situation of this type or even un sure if they are or not, to please seek help from someone. Family, friends, many places like safe passage as there are many organizations that can and will help. I feel very fortunate that I have so many amazing family and friends in my life and I continue and will always continue to make sure I keep myself surrounded with only the good and positive in my life! Thank you for reading and if donating I sincerely appreciate it from the bottom of my heart!          
 
I hope you’ll make a donation and help me meet my fundraising goal. Safe Passage relies on support from people like us to fund their programming--including an emergency shelter program, individual counseling and support groups, legal services, a 24-hour hotline and more. Here are some examples of what these services cost:

$20: Emergency funds for a woman to purchase groceries or diapers
$45: A one-hour counseling session for a woman seeking help for the first time
$80: One weekly drop-in group session for survivors of domestic violence
$100: An hour of ASL interpreting for a deaf survivor's counseling session
$135: Three sessions for children who have witnessed domestic violence
$500: A month of on-call advocacy for victims of domestic violence police calls

All contributions are tax-deductible, and you’ll receive an emailed receipt immediately after you donate.

Thank you so much for your support!  If you want to register for the event or learn more about it, visit http://hotchocolaterun.com.