The Marion County Children’s Alliance’s annual Night of Hope, which was rescheduled due to Hurricane Helene, took place on the evening of Oct. 21 at the College of Central Florida in Ocala.
The event honors victims and survivors of domestic violence. This year’s guest speaker was Michael Neely, the senior pastor at New Millennium Community Church, an advocate for abuse victims, and a survivor of domestic violence himself. Neely is the author of the book Black Eyes and Sweet Talk: A Biblical Perspective on Domestic Violence, which discusses coping techniques for victims based on scripture, from the perspective of a real survivor.
The alliance’s Family Violence Prevention Workgroup, which hosted the event, consists of representatives from a variety of social services, nonprofit and for-profit agencies, businesses and community members. Its mission is to end family violence in Marion County coordinating community resources and services to assist families in crisis. The workgroup organizes activities that increase public awareness through education, training and collaboration with individuals, community leaders, public and private organizations.
