Art

For the past 25 years, Lauren Weinstein has worked as a cartoonist, graphic journalist and educator. Weinstein believes fervently in the transformative power of combining words and pictures: words engage the intellect, and pictures which engage the gut. She taught the women to draw and make comics which became a cathartic outlet for them during a time of crisis: a special space to manage their emotions.  Currently, the women meet regularly to have a devoted art time. Weinstein was struck by the parallel of how time functions in comics and at Town Clock CDC.

Advocacy

The mission of Town Clock Community Development Corporation is to provide permanent, supportive, and affordable homes to survivors of domestic violence, and their children. The goal of this organization is to end the cycle of violence. Domestic violence and emotional abuse are harmful behaviors in which one person in a relationship manipulates and controls the other. This abuse exists across the spectrum of gender and relationships: heterosexual and homosexual couples, married and unmarried couples, and those living together, dating, or separated.

Community

Town Clock, CDC, provides long-term affordable housing for survivors of domestic violence.  Women are given time to heal by granting them safe and affordable housing. In the act of making comics, one can freeze time and space on the page to elucidate a story.  coLAB Arts also trained Weinstein to record oral histories. based on those records and interviews with staff and board members and extensive listening, she is working on a graphic novella based on this unique place.  Her work explores how the system has failed these women, yet Town Clock provides resources for them to evolve on their own terms.  

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Oral History Archive

Featured
Coping with Triggers, Emotional Intelligence, Faith-Based Services, Identifying Triggers, Intergenerational Violence, Male Dominance, Police Training, Trauma and Parenting
Christine Edwards
Coping with Triggers, Emotional Intelligence, Faith-Based Services, Identifying Triggers, Intergenerational Violence, Male Dominance, Police Training, Trauma and Parenting

Christine Edwards is a social worker at Town Clock who is finishing up her Master’s degree. Her job has helped her own personal growth.

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Coping with Triggers, Emotional Intelligence, Faith-Based Services, Identifying Triggers, Intergenerational Violence, Male Dominance, Police Training, Trauma and Parenting
Mental Health, Child Welfare, Economic Abuse, Gender Bias, Leaving Abusive Relationships, Long Term Housing, Mandatory Reporting, Sexual Violence, Victim Blaming
Town Clock CDC Resident
Mental Health, Child Welfare, Economic Abuse, Gender Bias, Leaving Abusive Relationships, Long Term Housing, Mandatory Reporting, Sexual Violence, Victim Blaming

This Town Clock CDC resident details their upbringing in Canada and New Jersey, and the domestic abuse that occurred in their family. They describe the physical and verbal abuse they encountered during their second marriage and the traumatic circumstances that occurred during their separation from their spouse. It was during this point that they found the services provided at Town Clock CDC.

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Mental Health, Child Welfare, Economic Abuse, Gender Bias, Leaving Abusive Relationships, Long Term Housing, Mandatory Reporting, Sexual Violence, Victim Blaming
Body Shaming, Diversity of Survivors, Economic Abuse, Intergenerational Violence, Isolation Tactics, Leaving Abusive Relationships, Mandatory Reporting, Marital Objectification, Perception of Perpetrators, Silencing Survivors, Toxic Masculinity
Sandy
Body Shaming, Diversity of Survivors, Economic Abuse, Intergenerational Violence, Isolation Tactics, Leaving Abusive Relationships, Mandatory Reporting, Marital Objectification, Perception of Perpetrators, Silencing Survivors, Toxic Masculinity

Sandy describes her childhood and multi-generational domestic abuse, both during her childhood and later in her life. She has had many interesting careers, specifically in the food business, and now is involved with the Board of the Town Clock CDC.

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Body Shaming, Diversity of Survivors, Economic Abuse, Intergenerational Violence, Isolation Tactics, Leaving Abusive Relationships, Mandatory Reporting, Marital Objectification, Perception of Perpetrators, Silencing Survivors, Toxic Masculinity
Affordable Housing, Homelessness, Advocacy, Economic Insecurity, Faith-Based Services, Funding Inequality, Long Term Housing, Mental Health Access, Short Term Housing, Substance Use Disorder
Susan Kramer-Mills
Affordable Housing, Homelessness, Advocacy, Economic Insecurity, Faith-Based Services, Funding Inequality, Long Term Housing, Mental Health Access, Short Term Housing, Substance Use Disorder

Reverend Susan Kramer Mills is the Executive Director of Town Clock CDC. She recalls her early childhood as well as her lifelong mission to help others and how she does that through church services.

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Affordable Housing, Homelessness, Advocacy, Economic Insecurity, Faith-Based Services, Funding Inequality, Long Term Housing, Mental Health Access, Short Term Housing, Substance Use Disorder