Steps of hope: Vineyard residents hold candlelight walk for domestic violence awareness
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- People participate in a candlelight walk Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, in Vineyard.
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- Susan R. Madsen speaks at a domestic violence awareness event Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, in Vineyard.
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- People participate in a candlelight walk Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, in Vineyard.
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- Susan R. Madsen speaks at a domestic violence awareness event Thursday, Oct. 2, 2025, in Vineyard.
Vineyard City and The Refuge Utah partnered Thursday night to raise awareness for domestic abuse victims and survivors at the annual “Walk for Hope.”
Led by an entourage of motorcycle riders, people held candles and reverently walked around Vineyard Grove Park.
“It was amazing to have so many from the community come and support survivors, and just to see everyone with their lights and realizing that we’re here to shed a light on domestic violence and bring awareness to the event,” said Ashlee Taylor, executive director of The Refuge Utah. “It was just an incredible experience to see everyone here and sharing.”
Vineyard Mayor Julie Fullmer said the city partnered with The Refuge Utah, an Orem-based nonprofit, to let community members suffering from domestic abuse know they have a place to turn.
“Domestic violence affects everyone, and it doesn’t really matter where you come from or where you’re going, or what creeps into your life,” she said.
Before the walk, Utah State University professor Susan R. Madsen, founder of A Bolder Way Forward spoke on the importance of the fight against domestic violence.
She said according to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, domestic violence is, “the willful intimidation, physical assault, battery, sexual assault and/or other abusive behaviors as part of a systemic pattern of power and control perpetrated by one intimate partner against another.”
One in three women in Utah experience intimate partner violence, Madsen said, and 86% of victims are female.
She called violence “absolutely unacceptable” and urged people to “move heaven and earth,” to protect their families and communities.
“We must significantly decrease the occurrence of domestic violence and substantially increase the resources and support for survivors in Utah County and around the state,” Madsen said.
The professor commended The Refuge Utah for its work and invited people to join the fight for change.
“I believe that your presence here tonight is a powerful act of just coming together and connecting,” Madsen said. “It says to victims and to survivors, we see your struggles, we see your pain, we hear your stories, and we will no longer look away.”
Taylor said The Refuge’s mission is to empower survivors, and that the organization looks to do that through its emergency shelter and housing program, and by providing therapy and educational resources.
“We’re just here to support survivors and to help spread awareness about the issue in our community and make sure that people know that there’s a place for them to go,” Taylor said.
People looking to help the cause against domestic violence can visit The Refuge’s website at therefugeutah.org.
