The GVSU Women's Center Silent Witness Exhibit

I am 37 years old and live in Muskegon, Michigan.  On March 7, my ex-boyfriend John William Walker shot his way into my home.  I hid in my bedroom and put my 2 children in the closet for their safety.  John forced his way into the room though and dragged me into the hallway.  He fatally shot me in the head and then turned the gun on himself. My name is Lori Sharan Strazanac. Remember my name.

October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month.  In memory of the Michigan women, and their family members, that have died as a result of domestic violence, the Women's Center annually holds a remembrance program.  The Silent Witness figures are placed at various locations on the GVSU campus during this time. They serve to educate and remind people that domestic and dating violence is a real problem and is happening in our communities. Each Silent Witness figure has the story of a women or child who died in the past year as a result of relationship violence. By raising awareness of this issue, the exhibit is a pro-active method to alert people to the fact that domestic and dating violence does not discriminate. 

This year, the Silent Witness Exhibit Unveiling Ceremony will be combined with a performance of The Yellow Dress. The Yellow Dress is a one-woman play about relationship violence. The event will take place on Monday, October 5 at the Cook-DeWitt Center.  Doors open at 7pm and the Silent Witnesses will be on display. The performance begins at 7:30pm with a few selected readings from the 2009 Silent Witness Exhibit. This event is free and open to the GVSU community.         

The exhibit is available for community organizations and agencies to use at events. Our Silent Witnesses have traveled to various places around the state including Northwest Community Schools in Jackson, MI and Domestic Harmony in Hillsdale, MI. Please download the attached document to reserve the figures for your upcoming programs on dating and domestic violence. Please return the Loan Agreement form (link provided below) to the Women's Center via fax at (616) 331-2965 or by email womenctr@gvsu.edu.

Loan Agreement Form

 For more information on the Silent Witness Project, please call the Women's Center at (616) 331-2748.