2016 Candlelight Vigil
With nearly 200 community members gathered around, Cherokee Family Violence Center had our Annual Candlelight Vigil last week on Tuesday, October 11th in Cannon Park, Canton, Georgia. The Vigil is a time to honor victims who have lost their lives to intimate partner violence and support survivors. We do this event every year during the month of October in observance of Domestic Violence Awareness Month.
We started off the ceremony with a blessing from Leonard Akers, the Pastor at Liberty Hill. Meg Rogers, Executive Director of CFVC also spoke sharing her passion for domestic violence and the mission of a community free of violence. We were fortunate to have Sheriff Frank Reynolds as the keynote speaker for the evening. He shared a personal story from a time earlier in his career where he truly saved a family’s life by identifying and holding a batterer accountable. His touching story and speech was followed with four courageous survivors sharing their stories. The survivors were so inspirational and brave. We concluded the program with the annual reading of the names and lighting of the candles. Throughout the program, Cherokee High School Choir sang beautiful songs.
Statistics (from October 1, 2015 til September 30, 2016)
3,341 Domestic Violence 911 Calls in Cherokee County
1,240 Hotline Calls to CFVC
138 Clients Sheltered by CFVC
130 Temporary Protective Orders Filed by CFVC
61 Domestic Violence Fatalities in Georgia
3 Victims Killed in Cherokee County
We appreciate all the organizations that assisted with making the Vigil happen: Target, Ingles, Darby Funeral Homes, Cherokee High School Art Department and Music Department, Shorewood Industries, and Fast Signs. We also appreciate the volunteers, interns, and staff who assisted as well. We could not do this ceremony without these organizations or people.