Jasmine’s Story

My husband abused me religiously, sexually, mentally, emotionally, verbally and physically. His whole family abused me and pulled my hair. He would He threw me on the bed, on the floor and against the wall. His sisters told him to beat me but to make sure that my body would not get any marks. He used to hang me by my ankles from the balcony and threaten to throw me over. I was praying to God to send one person, an angel to help me to escape his hands but nobody came to help me.

He pushed me out the door and told me to go out of the house. I begged him to not throw me out, it was at night and I was so scared and didn’t know where to go. Then I thought to myself that when he was done beating me and abusing me, he would call his sisters and the whole family so that they could come over and abuse me some more. This was always the practice.

I ran down the stairs crying and one neighbour saw me and told me that I have to call 911. I told her I didn’t have courage. She encouraged me to call because she knew it was not the first time and told me that he would kill me if I went back. She gave me 50 cents to call the police. I thought no more, if I want to stay alive, I have to go.

I will never ever forget that day, August 2nd, it was at night, around 1 or 2 am and two police officers brought me to Dr. Roz’s Healing Place. I was so afraid. I didn’t know what was going to happen to me. I cried non-stop and didn’t want the police to leave me there. I was worried that they would sell me or lock me inside of a room because that is what happens in my country. The police told me it was safe for me and that I would be okay there. The staff reassured me. I was offered food, shown to a room and given some clothes, blankets and a pillow, I was so grateful as I only had the clothes on my back. I slept and I felt easy. I realized it was very calm and good at the centre and woke up after many hours, feeling safe. Somehow I felt like I was in my mother’s lap. I couldn’t believe there were places like this for women. My English was very poor and I wasn’t able to communicate, I couldn’t understand easily so I would keep quiet. My counsellor would speak in Hindi with me. I would cry and cry and I felt comfortable to speak with her. She gave me sympathy and I will never forget what she did for me.

At Dr. Roz’s Healing Place, all the staff are so co-operative and very good and I have no words to explain the great qualities of everyone there. Dr. Roz is an angel for doing this type of work. This work is so important and life saving. After a little over a month at the Healing Place, I got my apartment and they gave a lot of things to me to help me set-up my new place. I just finished my high school equivalency courses, and I am now taking office administration. When I am done with school, I want to get a good job, I want to be of service and help other abused women who suffered like me. Especially in my culture there is so much violence, women are too scared to show other people what is really going on and what they are suffering through. I want to be their voice and teach them to find their own.

You may think I am doing something very extraordinary but truly, Dr. Roz’s Healing Place is my mother-home and my father-home. I am so grateful to everyone there for helping me find my voice.