We Run for Those Still Fighting: Leaving Isn't the Finish Line
- info902562
- Jun 1
- 3 min read
One of the biggest misconceptions people have about domestic violence is that the hardest part is leaving.
Don't get me wrong. Leaving is incredibly difficult.
For many survivors, it is one of the bravest and most dangerous decisions they will ever make. It often means walking away from everything familiar and stepping into a future filled with uncertainty.
But after years of working with survivors, I can tell you something that doesn't get talked about nearly enough.
Leaving is not the finish line.
In many ways, it is the starting line.
I have spoken with survivors who left with nothing but the clothes they were wearing. Some left behind homes, vehicles, careers, family support systems, and financial stability. Others left knowing they had no idea where they were going to sleep the next night or how they were going to feed their children the following week.
People often celebrate the moment a survivor leaves, and they should. It is an incredible act of courage.
What we don't always do is ask what happens next.
What happens when the survivor needs a safe place to live?
What happens when she has to find employment after years of being isolated from the workforce?
What happens when she wants to go back to school but doesn't know how she can afford tuition, books, childcare, transportation, or even the time required to attend classes?
What happens when the immediate crisis is over, but the rebuilding has only just begun?
These are the questions survivors face every day.
Over the years, I have watched survivors rebuild their lives one small step at a time. I have seen women earn degrees they never thought they would achieve. I have seen survivors start businesses, buy homes, raise healthy children, and create futures that once felt impossible.
But I have also seen how difficult that journey can be when someone is trying to do it alone.
The reality is that healing requires more than courage.
It requires opportunity.
It requires support.
It requires people who are willing to invest in a survivor's future rather than simply celebrating her escape.
That is one of the reasons Run4Her has become so important to our organization.
Every year, people join us because they believe survivors deserve more than survival. They deserve the chance to thrive.
They deserve access to education.
They deserve access to resources.
They deserve the opportunity to rebuild without carrying every burden by themselves.
When participants register, fundraise, donate, share posts, or simply help raise awareness, they are doing more than supporting an event.
They are helping create opportunities for people who are still fighting every day to rebuild what abuse tried to take from them.
And if you've ever watched someone start over from scratch, you understand just how important those opportunities can be.
This week, as we focus on those still fighting, I hope you'll take a moment to think beyond the moment someone leaves.
Think about the months that follow.
Think about the years that follow.
Think about the survivor who is sitting at a kitchen table trying to figure out how to pay for school, support her children, find stable housing, or create a future that looks different from her past.
Those survivors are still fighting.
Not for survival this time.
For healing.
For stability.
For opportunity.
For a future they deserve.
And that is one more reason we run.
Because every survivor deserves more than a chance to escape.
They deserve a chance to rebuild.