Why are those buildings purple? Purple, it is said, is the color of courage, survival, honor, and hope. Domestic violence service providers use the color purple to raise awareness about the prevalence of domestic violence and the 3 to 4 girls and women who are murdered each day in our country within intimate relationships. Some people in witness and protest wear purple clothing, attach a purple pin, or tie a purple ribbon around a tree. Plans are underway for the second annual Sudbury-Wayland-Lincoln purple lighting of faith and civic buildings and Walk and Vigil in Support of Gender Violence Prevention and the Domestic Violence Awareness Month of October.
The events will take place on Tuesday, October 9, beginning at 5:45pm with a walk from Community United Methodist Church on Damon Street in the Cochituate Village of Wayland and proceeding to the First Parish Unitarian Universalist (UU) Church in Wayland at 225 Boston Post Road. It is hoped that church bells will be rung along the route during the walk.
The vigil will be held at the First Parish UU Church from 7-7:45pm with brief remarks from faith and government leaders and then witnessing of the lethal violence among us through the reading of the names of those murdered in relationship, gender and break up violence this year in Massachusetts.
The events are sponsored by the Wayland Interfaith Leaders Association, the Sudbury-Wayland-Lincoln Domestic Violence Roundtable, and the LaurenDunneAstleyMemorialFund.org. The Roundtable presents programs in the local communities to educate and raise public awareness about abusive behavior, promote healthy relationships, especially in teen dating, and assist organizations that provide services directly to those affected by domestic violence. More information is available through the Roundtable website https://domesticviolenceroundtable.org and email infodvrt@gmail.com; and First Parish UU, Wayland, smay@uuwayland.org Consultation for potential abuse perpetrators may be made through contact with Emerge in Cambridge at 617-547-9879.
Town residents and members of 23 faith communities in the three neighboring towns are invited to take part, and to date, attendees are planning to come from the churches named and in addition the Trinitarian Congregational Church and Temple Shir Tikva, both of Wayland.
Homeowners may also take part by installing purple bulbs in their door and porch lights and their lampposts. An effective 4.5 watt light is the Feit LED Electric bulb, available inexpensively and locally at Ace Hardware.
Local residents are also reminded of the celebratory evening of the 20th Anniversary of the Sudbury-Wayland-Lincoln Domestic Violence Roundtable, to take place at the Trinitarian Congregational Church in Wayland at 53 Cochituate Road on October 18 at 6m. Tickets at $25 through the website provide dinner and a play, No More Secrets, produced by survivors and advocates at Second Step, and enacted by local actors including Joyce Kulhawik.
