About 50 people, including more than 20 students from the Kauai Community College Nursing Department, joined the YWCA of Kauai and special guests on Thursday for the annual candlelight vigil at St. Michael’s and All Angels Episcopal Church. The event, held during the World YWCA Week without Violence, takes place each October alongside Domestic Violence Awareness Month.
Performed as part of the World YWCA Week without Violence that overlaps the national Domestic Violence Awareness Month in October, Cheryl Lum, the YWCA of Kauai executive director, said the candlelight vigil is a time to remember those who were victims of domestic violence — not just on Kauai, but throughout Hawaii — as well as honor survivors.
The light from the candles represents hope for more survivors and an end to domestic violence, Lum said. And it is up to everyone to keep the light shining.
During the 2025 campaign, the YWCA movement, which overlaps with October being observed as Domestic Violence Awareness Month, has adopted the theme of Safe Beginnings: Protecting Mothers, Nurturing Futures as a time to come together and advocate for a safer world for women, girls, and families.
Participants, including special guest survivors who told of years of being victimized by domestic violence before escaping, were pensive as the candles burned in the darkness of the St. Michael’s Sanctuary while YWCA staff recounted the stories of domestic violence victims.
Lum outlined the services people can use in their efforts to escape domestic violence and asked the candle holders to bring their light home and out into the world.
Source: The Garden Island
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