ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) – October is also Domestic Violence Awareness Month, and the Albany Police Department held its 9th Annual 5K Run and Walk for Domestic Violence Awareness. Every year, the event aims to raise funds to help victims of domestic violence, along with partnering with domestic violence agencies that help men, women, and children.
Noel Day was at the event with her kids for the first time. She was also there to support her son, who is an Albany police officer.
“Definitely [here] to support the department and our son,” she said. “Since he’s been in the department for two years.”
Hayden Day and his sister Ava were also there to support the cause.
“It’s a great cause to support,” he said.
“I think it’s very important to support and to raise awareness on domestic violence,” Ava Day said.
Rebecca Ramos is one of the co-founders of the event and has been organizing the walk and run for nine years, rain or shine.
“It’s just to bring out the word about domestic violence,” Ramos said. “And how important it is to support this cause and how it affects many families.”
According to the CDC, more than ten million adults experience domestic violence each year in the U.S., and one in four women and one in seven men aged 18 and older in the U.S. have been the victim of severe physical violence by an intimate partner in their lifetime.
Organizers say the event has been able to not only spread awareness but also help other agencies that help domestic violence victims. The money raised each year goes towards helping local agencies that help women, men, and children who are victims of domestic violence.
“There’s services out there that can support folks and can refer people to services that they may need,” Ramos said.
