October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month and during October and November, Author A.S. Friedell will be donating to the Houston Area Women's Center 10% of the purchase price of her book, Bitter Persimmons: An Unlikely Story. Friedell and her two small children depended on such a shelter for 18 months. Because of that experience she understands the critical need.
(PRWEB) October 5, 2004 -- When A.S. Friedell found herself with no income and no way to pay rent after her last divorce, she was grateful for the assistance of a shelter for battered women. She and her children lived at the El Paso Shelter for Battered Women for 18 months, where she worked answering the hotline at night and planning meals for the large community of women and children.
In Bitter Persimmons, Friedell touches on this experience at the end of her memoir which chronicles one unsuccessful relationship after another. She continues to describe to radio audiences the "red flags" of potential abusive relationships, such as those of Lori Hacking and Laci Peterson.
"Those months at the shelter gave me a perspective on the needs of women I would never have understood otherwise. Time and time again I saw women return to their violent husbands out of fear and economic uncertainty. Women need safety nets so they can reclaim their lives and begin again."
Friedell is also founding a non-profit organization which is designed to provide grants for women with children to help them secure housing. "Being unable to come up with first and last month's rent is what keeps some women homeless," Friedell says, "even if they are employed."
Bitter Persimmons: An Unlikely Story (ISBN 0-9753760-5-5, 14.99) can be found at Amazon and through brick and mortar bookstores. The Houston Area Women's Center will receive $1.50 for each book sold during October and November.
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