An hour in their shoes

Yesterday morning, the Appalachian Power Park baseball field was transformed into a field of remembrance for domestic violence victims. Inmates at the Charleston Work Release Center came up with a creative idea for raising awareness about National Domestic Violence Awareness Month: placing a pair of shoes for each domestic violence victim assisted by the YWCA Resolve Family Abuse Program in Kanawha County last year.

The result was a powerful visual image of 912 pairs of shoes neatly lined up in rows across the baseball field. This awareness event, entitled "An Hour in their Shoes," attempted to put into perspective the prevalence of domestic violence in Kanawha County alone. Inmates from the center also reserved a special place for five particular pairs of shoes, representing the five domestic violence-related deaths that occurred in our county last year.

We at the YWCA, along with the Charleston Work Release Center, wish to thank the Appalachian Power Park for use of their field, as well as area thrift stores - including YWCA Past & Present and Goodwill - that generously donated all 912 pairs of shoes. More importantly, we thank Pam Baldwin and the inmates at the center for their initiative to raise awareness on this critical problem in our community.