Human Options, the leading organization in advocating for survivors of relationship violence in Orange County, hosted its annual Fall Luncheon on October 11 at the Lido House Hotel in Newport Beach to raise awareness and inform attendees about relationship violence during Domestic Violence Awareness Month.
Donors, volunteers, supporters, and friends of the organization attended wearing purple – the color of domestic violence awareness – to raise critical funds for Human Options’ relationship violence programs. These include a 24-hour hotline, emergency shelter, walk-in centers, transitional housing, counseling programs, legal advocacy, community education, and prevention services.
During the program, guests participated in a social hour and purchased opportunity drawing tickets for a night at Lido House, a Duffy boat ride donated by Electric Boats Rental followed by lunch at Buddah’s Favorite, or a glam session with Beauty Geek Agency.
The event featured two speakers: a former client of Human Options, and Beverly Gooden, a distinguished writer and social activist who launched a worldwide movement with the hashtag, #WhyIStayed. Both survivors shared their personal stories, reminding everyone that empowering survivors of domestic violence and raising awareness for prevention requires breaking the cycle of violence across generations.
“October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, and Human Options hosts its annual luncheon at this time to shine the light on relationship violence as an issue that impacts everyone in our community,” said Maricela Rios-Faust, CEO of Human Options. “We thank the two survivors of abuse who shared their stories and the role that access to resources and support have on helping survivors of relationship violence heal and break the intergenerational cycle of abuse.”
The Human Options client started with a video in which she shared her story of witnessing her father abusing her mother as a child. She made a commitment that day to stop this cycle, declaring, “This will never be me.” When she was a teenager, she and her mother connected with Human Options and accessed services that they did not even know existed. Years later, in front of this year’s luncheon attendees, she proudly stated that her purpose is to break the cycle of violence, end the trauma, and move forward by giving her daughters the best life possible.
Keynote speaker Beverly Gooden is a distinguished writer and social activist who gained renown for spearheading the groundbreaking social movement, #WhyIStayed, a response to victim blaming of domestic violence survivors. CNN hailed #WhyIStayed as one of the eight hashtags that reshaped the world.
Gooden’s writings have been featured in The New York Times, TIME, and the U.S. Office on Women’s Health. In 2022, Gooden released her debut memoir, “Surviving: Why We Stay and How We Leave Abusive Relationships,” reflecting on the complexities of intimate partner violence.
Gooden shared her story of surviving abuse and revealed the many barriers she faced in escaping violence.
“When you’re planning escape, you don’t realize how much it costs. I realized that rental application fees cost money, security deposits cost money, transportation costs money. All these things cost money that I just didn’t have because all I had was him.”
She found support at a local domestic violence agency, where she found a community who connected her to resources and helped her rebuild her life. In looking back, Gooden says that her ex-husband is not the villain of her story, because he is also a survivor who witnessed abuse in his own family across generations. Instead, Gooden is empowered to end relationship violence by understanding its complexities. “It’s up to us to speak out and say something to help prevent it and help end it.”
Throughout its history, nearly 10,000 community members have come to Human Options each year seeking a safe space through its residential, community-based services, and prevention programs. Last year, 5,530 survivors called the Irvine-based nonprofit’s 24-hour hotline and connected with immediate crisis support, information, and referrals. Human Options reached nearly 4,400 community members through education and prevention, and helped survivors exit crisis and find hope.
An Anonymous donor was the event’s Title Sponsor and Awareness Ambassador, with Mara and Keith Murray, Clay Richardson, and Barbara U. Roberts and as EMPOWER(er) Sponsors. PROTECT(or) Sponsors included Gary Faust and Maricela Rios-Faust, Susan Heller, Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian, Michele and Adbo Khoury, KPMG LLP, Latham & Watkins LLP, Michele Linaweaver, Doug and Lynne McLeish, Mechanics Bank, Katie and Fred Nunez, O’Melveny & Meyers LLP, and Whittier Trust.
Clay Richardson and Courtney Williams were the co-Chairs of the luncheon, which raised $225,000.
The mission of Human Options is to ignite social change by educating Orange County to recognize relationship violence as an issue that threatens everyone, advocating for those affected by abuse, extending a safe place for victims, and empowering survivors on their journey of healing.
Now in its 43rd year, Human Options provides a full continuum of services to stop the violence, such as a 24-hour crisis hotline, emergency shelter and transitional living programs, education, awareness and prevention presentations and trainings in the community, and low-/no-cost services, including counseling, legal advocacy, children’s therapies and empowerment classes offered in six locations throughout the county.
For more information about Human Options, please visit www.humanoptions.org.
