Formerly known as Christchurch Women's Refuge, the organisation Aviva is marking 50 years of supporting Cantabrians to live violence-free.
In half a century, the service has helped 50,000 people, but the last three years have seen demand skyrocket.
Clare loves to do baking, and for a long time, she says it’s been her outlet.
Clare's not her real name; we're protecting her identity because of what she's been through, spending over a decade with a violent partner.
“A bit of a happy place when times weren't great,” she says.
“We had doors that were kicked in, and table smashed, cutlery smashed, microwave smashed, vacuum cleaner… doors kicked in, holes and walls.
"On about, I think, three, perhaps three occasions, I had been assaulted as well… I knew that if I left, he would come after me, and he had said he would kill me if I took the children away,” Clare says.
But one day, she did just that.
“It just was like, honestly, just a weight was lifted.”
And in the wake of her escape, Aviva stepped in.
She says the people there were always available.
“Aviva’s there 24/7, actually, and it was two years ago, two years ago, nearly when I left, and I'm still being supported by them and the kids… I don't think people realise the impact that they have and what they can do to people's lives,” she says.
Formerly named Christchurch Women’s Refuge, Aviva originally opened their first refuge house, the first of its kind in Aotearoa, on Kilmore Street in 1973.
This was the start of the family violence refuge movement in New Zealand, which inspired the set-up of many other refuges across the country.
General manager Gwenda Kendrew says the women who started the refuge would have been seen as “troublemakers” at the time.
“People would have been called activists or feminists, actually; those words are correct for the women that got together. They really had a passion for people who weren't being heard or weren't being supported, so they took it upon themselves to make a change in the communities that they were living in,” she says.
In half a century, the services on offer have helped 50 thousand people across Canterbury, not only victims but also users of violence.
Kendrew says demand for services has increased, particularly in the last three years.
“Everybody looks at the pandemic and what changes that might have made. There's been a significant change for us in the volume of people who we are supporting; we've probably had a 300% increase,” she says.
Clare wants people suffering like she was to reach out.
“Nobody deserves to live this life, and there is help, and things will get will get better and yeah, don't give up hope, I suppose,” she says.
She says with the help of Aviva, she’s now able to do what she wants with her life, encouraging others not to give up hope.
SHARE ME