The Breakroom

Within four days, this single hashtag had been tweeted an astounding 1.2 million times.

We begin every new session at Caroline Center with a reading of Mary Oliver’s poem “The Journey.” It’s the ending of the poem, this last stanza, I think, that really gets to people.

When Julio Sabetta answered the phone, more than likely he was not expecting to hear the voice of Pope Francis saying, “This is Father Bergoglio. I would like to speak with (your wife) Jacqueline Lisbona.” But, the Pope was doing something that is becoming familiar in the eyes of the world – living his faith outright in a deeply personal way and leading by example, with humility. A religious matter had been troubling Ms. Lisbona, she had reached out to Pope Francis, and he heard her and responded. This is the “Francis Factor.”

The Julie Gold song “From a Distance” has long been a favorite of mine. And, as two strikingly different events converge this year – the 50th anniversary of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s “War on Poverty” and a rare meet-up in our own Milky Way galaxy of two unique, yet equally impressive entities, a spectacular gas cloud and an immense black hole with the mass of four million suns, Gold’s lyrics give us pause for thought...

With all of the flurry over the increased minimum wage – from the marketing appeal of an impressive-looking double-digit number to the downright attractive-sounding and memorable “$10.10” – I can’t help but wonder if we might be missing the bigger picture.

A couple of years ago, I was at a local mall purchasing what is now a very outmoded version of the latest iPhon

Nearly 60% of the women who attend Caroline Center are or have been victims of domestic or relationship violence. Below, in her own words, is one of their stories. All names have been withheld to protect the innocent.

Many of the women who attend Caroline Center enter this world with the deck squarely stacked against them. Many, but not all. Take, for example, Caroline Center graduate, Quy’an (pronounced Kwan-yun) or “Q” as she is called by just about everybody. Q grew up on Long Island, New York in a relatively stable family environment. Though her parents divorced when Q was 12 years old, to this day they remain “best friends” and – more importantly – strong and positive influences in Q’s life. She describes her mother as a “hard worker” and recalls (with a smile) how her father constantly nagged her about schoolwork and admonished her to “keep her head in the books.” Their good example and advice paid off.

“My potential will carry me to a great place.”
Because so many of the women who attend Caroline Center come from similar backgrounds and have similar life experiences, the tendency to lump them all together under one label might be considered understandable. Understandable perhaps…but wrong.

Because the women of Caroline Center have experienced more of life’s ups and downs in their short lives than many people 2 and 3 times their age, you forget just how young these women really are. Most of them are under 40. The majority are in their twenties and early 30’s. Some are barely out of their teens. Yet, when you listen to their sagas, it’s as if they’ve each lived a hundred life times. It’s impossible not to be moved by their stories of struggle and survival. Not to be won over by their courage and determination or overcome with love and admiration. And then there are those like Charlene who, upon hearing her story, you just want to wrap your arms around in a tight and protective maternal embrace.