By Rachel Tiffen
Nada Roberts has had a rope tied around her neck.
She has had a pillow held over her face.
She has been hurled from one end of the house to the other.
She has been pushed off a terrace on to concrete below.
If anyone understands the evils of domestic violence, it's this woman.
For the past 24 years, the 58-year-old Bay mother-of-two has put that experience to good use, volunteering at the Tauranga Women's Refuge.
She is one of about a dozen dedicated people who help mend battered limbs, hearts and souls.
But the refuge needs more volunteers.
So, centre manager Hazel Hape is doing a "shout-out" to the Western Bay community, urging people to lend a hand, in whatever capacity they can manage. A training programme has been earmarked for the first three Saturdays of October.
This December marks a quarter of a century since the haven first opened its doors to psychologically and physically abused women and children. An anniversary cabaret is in the pipeline, for which Ms Hape is desperately trying to track down a founding member named Chris Grove.
When Ms Roberts began volunteering back in the 1980s, she brought in four battered women.
The women said if their partners got a hold of them, they would be killed.
All four women died.
"In those days, if you went down the street and got raped you deserved it," Ms Roberts said, her facial expression barely changing.
Ms Roberts - who recently completed a certificate in social services and will tackle the diploma next year - has helped women through some terrible times. One in particular, sprung to mind. "This woman came to the refuge ... she had a baby with her. She had had a stroke and couldn't talk. I took her under my wing."
The woman had an abscess in her throat and was sent to hospital, where Ms Roberts spent the next 24 hours at her side.
Ms Hape described her friend and colleague as "a guiding light", who had been indispensable throughout her eight-month tenure.
And she is just one of a team of devoted volunteers. "There's just some amazing ladies here and men, it's guys too ... that's another myth about Women's Refuge - that we have no men."
Take maintenance man Bob Laws for example, who is "just so supportive".
Meanwhile Ms Roberts is so committed to her work, it's a battle to make her take time off. "I have deliberately put systems in place, so that she has to have days off," Ms Hape laughed.
For the long-serving volunteer it's all about helping women like herself.
"I have an empathy with these women. They will be telling me their stories and I will say to them: 'It's a long tunnel, but there's a light at the end of it. I say to them put small goals in place."
Ms Roberts also has one piece of advice for domestic violence victims. "Get out because it's only going to get worse. Nothing changes unless the person themselves wants to change."
* Those interested in volunteering are asked to contact Tauranga Women's Refuge on 541 1910.
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