Healing Will Began for Trauma Victims at Powerful Event
The statistics are staggering. Researchers say at least one in 7 children have experienced child abuse or neglect in the U.S. One in every four girls and one in every six boys will be sexually abused before the age of 18. Nearly 20 people per minute are physically abused by an intimate partner.
“Those traumatic incidences have a lasting effect and can produce a lifetime of pain, anger and fear for millions of Americans,” explained Dr. Deborah Simmons, a pastor and cofounder of South Sacramento Christian Center (SSCC). “Many victims of abuse, including those in the Sacramento area, have stayed silent and never dealt with the hurt.”
Simmons, SSCC and its women’s ministry, Women By Design, want to help the healing begin with a special event called Speak Out. It will be held on June 23, 2023, at 6:30 pm at SSCC, 7710 Stockton Boulevard, Sacramento, CA 95823.
Speak Out will feature actors doing monologues portraying the real-life stories of people who have experienced trauma. The monologues will be followed by a panel of experts who will lead a discussion and take questions from the audience. An intercessory prayer team and ministers will be on hand to pray with individuals impacted by the stories and discussion. Representatives from various local organizations will also be available to help those who are ready to dig deep within themselves and begin processing their pain.
In 2019, SSCC hosted a similar event called Silent Scream. It was the brainchild of Nikkia Hamilton, an SSCC praise and worship leader and trauma survivor. Her idea became a reality after speaking with Simmons, who had written a poem for her own daughter called Little Sad Face. Simmons later discovered her child was silently dealing with the unspoken topic of abuse.
“We expected 200 people at Silent Scream and 400 showed up,” Simmons recalled. “People said they had never experienced anything like it. There was a dark heaviness in the sanctuary. However, the atmosphere became lighter as men and women begin to talk about their deeply painful experiences. This year, we will provide that safe space for survivors at Speak Out.”
Simmons turned her poem for her daughter into a colorful, illustrated book for young children who are experiencing trauma. A coloring book is also available. Both publications encourage children to tell someone who will stop their hurt and pain and put them on the road to recovery.
For more information, contact South Sacramento Christian Center at (916) 681-6791 or info @southsacchristiancenter.org
