DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AWARENESS MONTH
KYLE — For more than a decade, Unforgettable Families and Friends President and Founder Cynthia Bentley has been participating in Pillow of Peace, bringing the program to Hays County.
According to Bentley, Mary Schultheis, a native of Beaumont, Texas, relocated to New Orleans as a nurse, where she often spent time at women’s shelters. It was here that she listened to the stories of those leaving abusive relationships with nothing more than personal items thrown in a pillowcase. After her visits, continued Bentley, Schultheis would lay on her pillow at night and realized that the comfort she received from her pillow, many of the women did not have this; thus, the creation of Pillow of Peace.
Aiding in this effort in New Orleans was Bentley.
“After [Hurricane] Katrina, I bought the house [in Kyle] as my evacuation house in case I needed it and each time I would come back and forth to visit, I would do things in the community … October is my birthday month, so, as a gift to the community, I decided to order some pillows. We started with just 32 pillows that we donated to the Hays-Caldwell Women’s Center in 2008,” Bentley.
This collection of pillows has grown over the years, bringing Pillow of Peace to Hays County. Bentley’s creation of the nonprofit Unforgettable Families and Friends in 2016 enabled the founder to contribute at a greater level.
This year, Kyle Area Senior Zone (KASZ), VFW Post 115 Ladies Auxiliary, Hays County ESD #5, Kyle Police Department, Kyle Fire Department and Kyle Citizens Police Alumni Association are joining the cause.
On Nov. 2, KPD will be outside of Kohl’s, located at 20185 Marketplace Ave., and KFD outside of Walmart at 5754 Kyle Parkway to collect donations.
Until then, donations can be made at drop-off boxes at the Public Safety Center at 1700 Kohlers Crossing and Hays County ESD #5 at 210 W. Moore Street.
After the collection, various nonprofits, such as HCWC and Southside Community Center, will pick up the pillows to distribute to those who use their services. Bentley clarified that nonprofits, including those who provide shelter for unhoused individuals, across Central Texas will take pillows.
New this year will be pillowcases made by the Kyle Quilters at KASZ, with approximately 500 handmade pillowcases already completed.
Hopefully, she continued, the nonprofits will be surprised with a pillowcase for each pillow donated.
The most important aspect of Pillow of Peace is not only the donations, but the awareness it brings to domestic violence, explained the founder.
“You don’t know what somebody is [experiencing] until you talk with them,” stressed Bentley. “You will be surprised on how many silent people we have that are a victim of domestic violence.”
One day, when doing her research for a presentation, Bentley was surprised to realize that she was a domestic violence victim. During her time in New Orleans, she noted that she was married for 21 years before she was able to flee. She recalled the harmful words and isolation that came with her marriage: “You’re not good enough” or inquiries of why she was never at family events that her husband kept from her.
“That’s why helping bring awareness to domestic violence is very, very important, so that others can learn that possibly there are victims that they’re not aware of. When we think of domestic violence, we think of the physical things you can see, but that mental isolation, that’s another thing,” she said.
“Domestic violence is not always what you can see.”
For more information, visit www.unforgettablelives.org or email Unforgettablelives@gmail. com.
