My name is Adrienne Rouan. As a domestic violence advocate and one of the women featured in the documentary Scars Unseen, I have both survived and witnessed firsthand the silent life and death struggles many families face.

This week, as Scars Unseen makes its international debut at the Melbourne Documentary Film Festival in Australia, I want to use this screening for EXACTLY what we made this film for, and ask you to help me directly support a survivor of severe violence who needs us this very minute, as well as throughout the following long difficult months of recovery.

My voice and face are not my own anymore. They represent the millions upon millions of women who suffer silently every single day. Scars Unseen has given me a platform to share stories of resilience and hope. We never heal and overcome alone!

Today, I and a community of women I support are reaching out to you with compassion and hope for this amazing, creative, smart, beautiful, professional woman. She is a loving mother with several children and a cherished member of the group. She has done all the things our society tells us to do to be successful and safe. She has put many years of hard work and love into her family, home, and business.

Very recently, tragedy struck when she experienced a violent attack from the person she most deeply loves and trusted. She is currently in a trauma center in critical care. She will make it. We don’t yet know the full extent. From what is known for sure, it is drastic.

Domestic violence is not often discussed publicly, and indeed the topic is so taboo for many reasons, one of which is that our very loyalty and love as women is often used against us when we speak up. It feels uncomfortable to discuss, so we don’t. We love them, so we don’t say anything. Friends and family love us, and so would be angry at the abuser, and maybe even us, so we keep it a secret. We built our home around the promises of their vows, which we believed or we wouldn’t have taken them, so we stay. THESE are the unpopular truths that powerfully suppress us, sometimes, until it’s too late.

You can tell from how I’m writing that I’m removing identifying details. I’m protecting her anonymity. That’s because she is literally broken right now. She needs protection. She needs us. Each woman who reads this is her voice and her face right now. Women are the pathway through which life arrives. We bring it forth from the creation, and when a beautiful sister is nearly taken, we need to come together and stop the stigmas and the judgement and show our communities what it looks like to build one another back up.

We need to stop the narrative that domestic violence is the “end” of who we are. We are victims only at the beginning. We are SURVIVORS in the moments, hours, weeks, and years after we say yes to life. When we choose to build ourselves back into a beautiful mosaic from the fragments of our broken dreams.

Please help me support this woman today. We need resources to help with trauma-informed helpers for both hers and the children’s recovery (mental, emotional, physical, all of it). We need her to know that her home will be there for her when she makes it back. We need to be able to help her family take care of the kids while she’s healing. I think it goes without saying that the abuser is not in the picture and there will be the legal path that also now has to be traversed. There are also little creatures who relied upon her for their food and home, in the form of some doggos and chickens.

Due to the severity of her injuries and the needs of her several children who are without mama right now, we are asking for what may seem like a large amount, yet “just enough” is BS. We as women are ALLOWED to ask for what we need! We need enough for her to truly have time to heal from her extensive injuries and provide more than the bare minimum for her children. Any parent who works for a living knows how terrifying it can be when we are unable to work. This story is literally how so many women end up unhoused. And with the astronomical cost of living right now, this fundraiser will allow her to receive not just adequate but excellent healing services for herself and the children. I will keep you updated as time goes on.

Children are literally our futures. They watch every move, listen to every word, and need to know that domestic violence is not ok, and ALSO that their mother will not be left to survive alone or be judged in a world that often asks “why did she stay” instead of “why the hell did he do this?”

This fundraiser is dedicated to helping this woman and her children rebuild their lives in the next months to years. The funds will be managed by a very close, trustworthy family member, and will go directly toward essential needs. Every contribution, no matter the size, will help provide stability and hope as they navigate this difficult time. As someone who has been through all the financial stages of the abuse recovery journey, I know it’s easy to feel insignificant if we don’t have “enough” to donate. Please don’t allow that to stop you! Even the smallest amount can help pay for the kids’ school supplies, lunch money, or a fun trip to the dollar store while mom recovers in the hospital. ANY amount truly matters. And sometimes even more than money, a share on your socials can land this fundraiser in the feeds of someone who does have that gift to give right now. Or, this story may even save another woman’s life. Come together and make a difference. Thank you for being part of this vital effort.

The women and I featured in Scars Unseen shared our stories to highlight the triumph of the human spirit after domestic abuse. Let’s support this beautiful soul and her children, and send a powerful message that no one is alone and that our community stands together in the face of adversity. And that women are changing the narrative. We are not victims forever. Domestic violence creates SURVIVORS. You can watch the trailer to our documentary here: https://kinema.com/films/scars-unseen-irimuc

Update: she is currently resting with a long long road of recovery ahead. She had been made aware of this campaign and is so so grateful for your love and support.