A Castle Where Hope Reigns : Cottage Gives Battered Women Shelter, Time to Rebuild Lives

After accusing his wife of not being affectionate enough, the husband punched her in the eye, bit her arm and then sat on top of her as he spit in her face.

The Thanksgiving Day beating last year may not have given Jan many reasons to feel thankful, but it did provide her with the courage to finally leave her abusive spouse.

But after leaving one set of troubles, she was suddenly faced with the daunting task of finding a new home for herself and her three young children, one of whom is confined to a wheelchair.

She was lucky enough to eventually find Hope Cottage, the first long-term shelter in the San Fernando Valley, which opened last month. The residential facility, a two-bedroom, one-bath home, provides domestic abuse victims such as Jan and her children a home for six months or more, compared to the average 30-day limit most emergency shelters offer.

“I didn’t have anywhere else to go,” said Jan during a recent interview at the house. “It came through just in time.”

Lynn Moriarty, director of the Family Violence Project of Jewish Family Services of Los Angeles, said her organization opened the cottage to provide women in violent relationships with a place to stay, find counseling and plan their future.

“We picked women who were really motivated to make a positive change for themselves and their kids,” Moriarty said. “Being here allows them time to save money for an apartment and to start new lives.”

Tucked away in a modest Valley neighborhood, Jan shares the house with Nancy, who with her four young sons, also fled an abusive husband. Out of concern for their safety, both women asked that their real names not be used and the location of the house be kept confidential.

To Jan and Nancy, who previously lived at shelters and with family members, the cottage is like a castle, protecting them from their turbulent past.

“Coming here was like a rest,” said Nancy, who realized she was a battered wife only after watching a video on domestic violence at her workplace. “Finally I was able to deal with my problems and help my children.”

The women are using their time at the cottage to accomplish different goals.

Jan is hoping to learn new job skills and Nancy, who is employed in health care, is saving money so she can afford a new home for herself and her sons.

In addition to receiving free food and shelter, the two families also attend weekly counseling sessions, which--according to Jan--is making the changes in her life easier.

“I have a different frame of mind now,” Jan said. “I can see how I was and how not to fall back there.”

A $25,000 gift from a volunteer enabled the Family Violence Project to lease the property for a year, while an endowment helps cover maintenance costs, Moriarty said. But more money is needed to continue to provide more services and to buy play equipment for the children.

And even more needs to be done to help other victims, said Moriarty. Hope Cottage is the only housing facility of its kind to serve the Valley’s more than 1 million residents.

“We will never build enough battered woman shelters and housing,” she said. “So far all the talk and all of the rhetoric generated by the O.J. Simpson case hasn’t transformed into money.”