Outstanding volunteer Rebekah Whittington shares her recent experiences volunteering at the Housing Court Assistance Center.

I had the honor of volunteering at a Standing with Our Neighbors community outreach event recently. And when I was a child, I could have been a client.

Jeffrey Tompkins, a volunteer, supporter, and long-time friend of AVLF, recalls his very first Saturday Lawyer experience – with a surprising twist.

Board Member Elizabeth Finn Johnson always wanted to work for the ACLU. But after finding herself in a corporate job, AVLF reignited her passion for pro bono service. 

Safe and Stable Families volunteer Farley Ezekiel explains why representing survivors of domestic violence in court is personal to her. 

“My clients have all been wonderful, hardworking people who found themselves in untenable situations and had the courage to stand up and say ‘no more.’ These cases serve as powerful reminders of the resiliency of the human spirit.”

One of the first things you learn in domestic violence training at AVLF is that violence can occur in any relationship, regardless of gender, race, or sexual orientation. We saw that firsthand. She was married to her abuser for decades and had several children with him. Both were highly educated, well-employed, and, to the outside world, had presented as a nearly perfect family. Until he tried to kill her.

I add the original victim’s and batterer’s child or children. The batterer literally pounds cruel lessons home. The children learn them young, filing them in the backs of minds, to surface later. An impulse to beat or to let a batterer attack can lie in wait, until a threat, tantrum or argument triggers it.

I am a guardian ad litem because I love having a positive impact on families. But I take cases through AVLF because they provide the support I need to be successful in confronting challenging issues and to develop my skills. That’s why I will continue to take pro bono cases through AVLF—and I encourage others to, as well.