Esperanza Shelter In The News
Esperanza Shelter, awaiting federal aid, shows facilities to congresswoman
Like many other shelters for domestic abuse victims, Esperanza Shelter in Santa Fe faced it share of challenges when the pandemic hit.
Chief among them: Many victims were forced to stay home with their abusers and could not find a safe place to make a call for help, said Anji Estrellas, executive director of the 45-year-old shelter.
She added domestic violence became “more lethal” as abusers resorted to more painful methods to silence victims, including strangulation.
To read more from the Santa Fe New Mexican article, please click here.
Esperanza Shelter Celebrates 45 years of tackling domestic violence, helping victims
Snow was falling in the early morning hours Feb. 17 when Amy Windels made the decision to leave an abusive relationship. Instead of waiting for things to turn violent — again — she called police around 3 a.m.
“I was very scared,” she said. “I was a little fearful of making that decision in and of itself, but I did it anyway.”
She had figured she would sleep in her car that night — in the cold, with no money.
To read more from the Santa Fe New Mexican article, please click here.