{"id":915944,"date":"2026-10-01T00:38:10","date_gmt":"2026-10-01T00:38:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/915944\/"},"modified":"2026-10-01T00:38:10","modified_gmt":"2026-10-01T00:38:10","slug":"surrey-shines-purple-as-community-joins-in-solidarity-for-purple-light-nights-campaign","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/915944\/","title":{"rendered":"Surrey \u2018shines purple\u2019 as community joins in solidarity for Purple Light Nights campaign"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Photo submitted<\/p>\n

OCTOBER 1\u00a0marks the first day of BC\u2019s Domestic Violence Awareness Month. According to the Province, 48%<\/a>\u00a0of women have experienced intimate partner violence since the age of 15.<\/p>\n

Starting in 2006, Purple Light Nights<\/a>\u00a0occurs every October in cities across North America, shining light on intimate partner violence in communities\u00a0and to honouring victims and survivors.<\/p>\n

The collaboration, including The City of Surrey<\/a>, along with Surrey Police Service<\/a>, and Surrey-based nonprofit organizations, Options Community Services<\/a>\u00a0and Surrey Women\u2019s Centre<\/a>, presents a collective community voice illustrating Surrey\u2019s recognition of this important issue. This Surrey collective is dedicated to growing the campaign in years to come, while engaging the community and expressing that intimate partner violence has no place in Surrey. Increasing awareness about the presence and effects of family violence and sharing information on the supports available in the community, are also vital priorities.<\/p>\n

\u201cEveryone deserves to feel safe in their home and in their community,\u201d said Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke. \u201cWe all have a role to play in preventing intimate partner violence and supporting those affected by it. This October, we\u2019re standing with survivors, raising awareness and reminding anyone experiencing violence that they are not alone and support is available.\u201d<\/p>\n

Starting with a kick-off event on October 1\u00a0at Options Community Services, bringing the team together to share resources and expertise, activity will continue throughout the month with various community events. Purple lights will be displayed at locations throughout Surrey, including within Surrey\u2019s Civic Plaza, which will be illuminated in purple from October 1-2 and from October 22-31.<\/p>\n

The team encourages those in the Surrey community to join them in displaying purple lights, both in professional spaces and in homes.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Surrey Police Service\u00a0is once again participating in Purple Light Nights, building on its involvement in last year\u2019s campaign to raise awareness of intimate partner violence and the importance of creating safer communities. Police are often among the first points of contact for people experiencing this violence, but meaningful prevention and support extend beyond a police response.<\/p>\n

\u201cPurple Light Nights\u00a0is an important way to demonstrate that our community stands with the victims of intimate partner violence,\u201d says Surrey Police Service\u00a0Interim Chief Constable, Todd Matsumoto.\u00a0\u201cCollaborative education, prevention, and awareness efforts, which support victims and their families, and enforcement efforts, are integral to making our homes, neighbourhoods, and city safer.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Surrey nonprofit organization, Options Community Services\u00a0offers various supports<\/a>\u00a0and programming, including a Domestic Violence Intervention Program that includes a Mom\u2019s Empowerment Group, designed for mothers who have experienced abuse in their intimate relationships, and the Caring Dads Group, supporting fathers in developing child-centred and abuse free relationships with their children and their children\u2019s mother. Options\u00a0also operates two Transition Homes for women and children fleeing intimate partner violence, along with a Threshold Multicultural Outreach Program and the PEACE<\/a>\u00a0program.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cProviding specialized support for all members of a family experiencing violence in the home is a significant focus for our organization,\u201d says Options\u2019\u00a0Director of Children, Families and Special Services, Elysa Philip. \u201cThis collective initiative is an important way to connect the community while sharing, learning, and standing as one against violence in Surrey homes.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Surrey Women\u2019s Centre\u00a0has provided wraparound support to survivors of gender-based violence since 1992. Through safety planning, police and hospital accompaniment, resource referrals, court support, counselling, a drop-in centre, legal support, and Windrose,\u00a0Surrey\u2019s first dedicated sexual assault centre, the team walks alongside and advocates for survivors on their journey out of violence and abuse.<\/p>\n

\u201cPurple Light Nights\u00a0is a time to honour those whose lives have been touched by intimate partner violence while sending a powerful message that survivors are not alone, and that together we can create pathways to safety, healing, and hope,\u201d says Surrey Women\u2019s Centre Executive Director, Shahnaz Rahman. \u201cWe remember the lives tragically taken, stand with those who continue to live with its impacts, and celebrate survivors who had\u00a0the courage to seek support and find a new beginning.\u201d \u00a0<\/p>\n

Raising awareness for this devastating issue can help to reduce stigma, encourage people to seek support, and connect individuals with community resources and services.<\/p>\n

BC residents are encouraged to join the discussion and voice their support for Purple Light Nights\u00a0on social media by using the project hashtag, #SurreyShinesPurple.<\/p>\n

The collective urges anyone experiencing violence from abuse to seek support, which is available throughout Surrey. Individuals are encouraged to call the Fraser Health Crisis Line<\/a>,\u00a0Surrey Women\u2019s Centre\u00a0Crisis Line\u00a0at 604-583-1295<\/a>, or Surrey Police Service\u2019s\u00a0victim services at 604-599-7600<\/a>,\u00a0where they will be offered supports best suited for them.<\/p>\n

\n\tRelated<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Photo submitted OCTOBER 1\u00a0marks the first day of BC\u2019s Domestic Violence Awareness Month. According to the Province, 48%\u00a0of…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":915945,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[194299],"tags":[49,48,87674],"class_list":["post-915944","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-surrey","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-surrey"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/915944","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=915944"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/915944\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/915945"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=915944"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=915944"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=915944"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}