Organizations team up to educate community members on domestic violence

TULSA, Okla — Several organizations around town partnered to educate community members about what domestic violence is and how it can be prevented.

Kira Price said she suffered from both mental and physical violence at the hands of her abuser which led her down a road of depression, addiction and finally, healing.

“The biggest lessons for me are: my past history doesn't define me, I'm not alone," she said. "I'm not the only one experiencing these things. I'm not the only one with trauma, and I definitely wasn't the only one that thought that I was not worth the air I was breathing.”

She said while it was a long road to recovery, she made it, and now even works as an advocate for people going through the same.

“For me, it's very important to have Domestic Violence Awareness Month because I have kids," she said. "I was in domestic violence, but I didn't know anything about it growing up. It's not really talked about. At least it wasn't whenever I was growing up.”

Oklahoma is known to have a track record when it comes to being highly ranked in domestic violence incidents.

In 2025, the National Network to End Domestic Violence ranked Oklahoma as first in the nation for domestic violence incidents.

Suzanne Stewart is the CEO of the Family Safety Center who has helped put together the panels around town to spread more awareness.

“There are ways and paths that you can take that you design yourself, that give you hope, that provide support for you and the people around you," she said. "The people around you can provide hope for you, and you don't have to be who you think you should be. You can be who you want to be.”

Stewart said the new Case Family Center on 28^th and Sheridan aims to be a one-stop shop for people looking for safety from domestic violence situations.

“It's not just about protective orders," she said. "It's about transitional housing. It's about advocacy services. It's about safety planning. It's about civil legal services. It's about civil legal services that involve attorneys and family cases, medical issues.”

Both Stewart and Price listed some warning signs of domestic violence including trying to extend control over finances and wherabouts, coercion, isolation and even having previous experience with violence.

They want to make sure everyone knows they can find help just one call away- whether it's to DVIS, the Case Family Center or even a friend.