Abuse survivor lends voice to cause

Cannon Connections photo: Eric Butler Dawn Lade, right, hugs Family Advocacy Program Outreach Manager Tyleen Caffrey during a presentation on domestic violence Tuesday night. Lade spoke about her experience in an abusive relationship at the base theater.

The crowd wasn’t big for Dawn Lade on Tuesday night, but it’s a hard audience to draw out.

Lade, 36, was at the Cannon Air Force Base theater to give a lecture about domestic violence. She’s as much of an expert as anyone in the field, from a certain perspective, as Lade got out of an abusive relationship years before — “with my life, so that’s a good thing,” she said.

Since that trying period, Lade has tried to help others in similar situations.

“I’m a firm believer that, anything bad that happens, you can turn around and turn into something positive,” said Lade, who is now happily married and at Cannon because her husband is stationed there. “Being able to help somebody else, kind of makes you a better person.

“I think it helps encourage people to talk about it; lets them see someone who’s lived through it,” Lade added. “Even though it’s hard to talk about it, it gets easier as time goes by.”

Lade’s talk, scheduled to take place right after a showing of the movie “Enough” starring Jennifer Lopez, is one of several presentations she’s made recounting an abusive past with a former boyfriend.

Breaking away from a pattern of domestic violence isn’t a clear-cut easy decision, Lade said, as many would like to believe.

She said that, even after moving away, her boyfriend persisted in making contact.

“It’s hard to get out of. There’s so many different circumstances,” Lade said. “So many people are quick to say, ‘Why don’t you just leave?’ But it’s not always easy to get away from that.”

The presentation was an event sponsored by the Family Advocacy Program at Cannon as part of Domestic Violence Awareness Month.

Tyleen Caffrey, outreach manager for the program, said that former victims of domestic violence can be highly beneficial in trying to reach out to others in similar environments.

“Anytime you have somebody who has experience in the subject matter, whether it’s child abuse or victims of domestic violence, sometimes it hits home more than just showing a movie,” Caffrey said. “As a social worker, I could talk all day long on domestic violence, but having someone with that experience makes much more impact.”

Caffrey and Lade recommended that those currently in an abusive relationship contact the Family Advocacy Program at 784-2474 for more information.

“It’s behind me, but I don’t think you ever forget about it. It’s always going to be emotional to a certain degree. “For me, talking about it helps me to overcome.”