Discover Legal Internet Radio with Delaproser on BlogTalkRadio
Social Awareness Radio interviews Jenna Kandyce Linch, Rape Survivor and Woman's Right's Activist she is a published author and philanthropistBorn To Be's Motto: Believe To Achieve!
http://www.born2be.webs.com
Like Born To Be Inc. On Facebook
http://www.facebook.com/born2beinc
Our overall goal: help give abuse victims and survivors the assistance they need to help them back on their feet and provide them with education and resources to aid them once they leave the Born To Be retreat so they will continue to receive guidance and direction and have support and help in rebuilding their lives instead of being thrown out into the world to find their way on their own.
Our Objective: To provide a safe environment where abuse victims and survivors can learn how to take bak control of their lives and gain victory over the past by offering programs in which they are free to creatively express themselves in a healthy, positive way. These programs will help them see the beauty within and unlock their potential as they discover who they were truly born to be in life. Our services are unlimited and it is our hope that when students leave the retreat, they will do so with a renewed sense of self worth, self confidence, and with a purpose of knowing their life holds so much more for them because that broken, damaged perspective will be gone and replaced by a perspective of self love and acceptance. Also, it is our goal to educate the public about abuse and show them the successful, strong, beautiful side of survivors that society fails to depict. We encourage healing through music, writing, exercise, support groups, art, sports, and poetry to name a few of the programs.
The idea for Born To Be, Inc. came about as a result of personal things I went through in my own life. The name Born To Be was a name I came up with when I was out running one day and thinking about how we were born to be so much more in life then we sometimes know or even realize. I began to think about how it's so easy for us as survivors of abuse to feel this guilt and view ourselves as damaged goods or broken when we're not, when we have nothing to be ashamed of and how it's not and never was our fault that we went through what we did. The more I thought about my own personal experiences and my own past, the things I struggled with and battles I was forced to fight alone, I decided the name Born To Be was perfect because when people ask, Born To Be what? the answer is that is what we are finding out in our own lives as we discover more of who we are every day. As a survivor of child abuse, domestic violence, and rape, I know what it's like to battle with those feelings of not being good enough, to carry guilt that is not ours to bear, and to feel alone, wondering if there's anyone out there who cares. Growing up, I watched my parents fight all the time, I heard them say how they didn't want me, I watched my own mother be broken down by my father and so many times I wished she would have had the courage to leave him. I suffered abuse at the hands of both parents and many nights I did cry myself to sleep. Later on during my teen years, I saw my mom suffer through depression, locking herself up in her bedroom or bathroom, crying for a long time and not taking an interest in my life or caring what I did. She became a shadow of who she was. It was during my childhood and teen years that I developed the habit of self infliction because I'd rather feel the physical pain instead of the emotional pain tearing me up inside. Many times I would sneak out of the house and be gone for hours at a time, hiding in a secret place and writing down my thoughts. Eventually later on I became a writer and author, sharing my story to help other victims and survivors out there.
It wasn't until I got married that I really began to see and understand more of what my mother went through with my father when I endured domestic violence in my marriage. I remember the nights I would close myself up in the bathroom just as my mother had, afraid to come out, and I'd sit there in the dark, cutting myself, punishing myself because I thought that it was my fault why my husband was so mad at me. I went through some very dark times during my brief marriage of 9 months, but 5 years later, I'm rebuilding my life, speaking out more, not taking my life for granted and doing what I can to give back and offer encouragement to those who are hurting and who have felt and feel the pain of abuse. The reason why I created the petition for Born To Be is because I've been there in my life where I didn't like myself, where I thought that death was my only way out, where I wanted to give up because when I looked in the mirror I only saw myself as ugly and broken and damaged from the abuse and rape I went through. I was one of those who never told anyone about any of it, but kept it all hidden inside, putting on that mask, that smile, so others would think I was okay and not catch on to the hurt I felt inside. I thought that if I shared my story, they wouldn't understand, that they'd just judge me. However, when I began writing as my outlet to express my feelings and emotions from the past, I discovered that in sharing my story, people didn't look at me as broken and damaged but were actually inspired because they saw how I overcame those things in my life. Most of the time we survivors are afraid to speak out, thinking that people will just see us as damaged and broken but that is the label that society puts on us. When we speak out, when we do share our experiences and stories, people listen and often are inspired and motivated by our testimonies for they see us as strong for overcoming everything we have and rising above it.
It is my goal, my dream, my vision and my wish that Born To Be is a safe place for survivors and victims of abuse, a place where they can continue to grow and heal, where they can piece their lives back together, and where they can get that second chance and live in the freedom to be who they want to be and to have the life they've only dreamed of, one that is free from abuse. I'm asking that people print out the petition and share it with others in your area, to get more signatures for it, and if you'd like to volunteer and help out, feel free to contact me at jklinch_risingabove@yahoo.com. This is a work in progress right now, but it's one that is worth it to me. Let's help stop the cycle of abuse and violence that goes on and let's help give others a second chance at a better life. Together we can make a difference in this world, and together our voices can be heard loud and clear. Together we can help save so many lives out there by restoring faith and hope, by showing we care, and by uniting and standing together on life's battlefield as we break down the walls of ignorance and break our silence for those who hurt us are not worth throwing our lives away for but they are always worth breaking our silence for.
Jenna Kandyce Linch
Founder and President of Born To Be, Inc.
Author and Survivor of Child Abuse, Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault
No comments:
Post a Comment