An intro to Mary’s House CEO Yvette Vignando
Ahead of our annual fundraising dinner on behalf of Mary’s House Services at Green Moustache on Saturday 2nd September 2023, we sat down with CEO Yvette Vignando to find out more about her and the important work they do over at Mary’s to help women and children escape domestic violence.
Check out the interview below and signup to our newsletter to find out details about our next fundraiser.
Hi Yvette, can you tell us a little about yourself, when you joined the organisation and why?
I joined Mary’s House Services in April, after almost four years as CEO at Justice Support Centre, a large domestic and family violence service and community legal centre. It’s an honour and a joy to connect people with causes they care about and work alongside colleagues with a commitment to social justice, and an end to gendered violence and abuse. My career has spanned law, executive coaching, publishing, and media and leadership roles in a school and not for profits. I’m on the board of our peak body, Domestic Violence NSW.
One in 3 women in Australia has experienced physical violence since the age of 15, and one in 5 has experienced sexual violence. The women referred to are frequently mothers – their children are also victim-survivors of this abuse, and they experience lasting trauma.
Mary’s House is an example of what a community can achieve when it identifies a gap in services and a desperate need for community support directed to the safety of women and their children. I was drawn to working at Mary’s House Services because of its origin story and the significant potential I saw to rally the community to further increase our impact on women’s and children’s safety.
Our services were established in 2016 by local community members. Founders recognised the need for local collective action to respond to the epidemic of domestic and family violence. Since then, Mary’s House has enabled women and children to thrive, and saved lives.
Can you describe the core programs and services your organisation offers to assist women and children escaping domestic violence? How have these programs evolved over time?
Mary’s House refuge was our first project, setting up a safe and comfortable home for women and their children, and supporting them in recovering from violence and abuse, while developing plans for their relocation to safe housing. The property for our refuge is leased to us by a church group whose parishioners contributed immensely to the investment of resources and funds required to make the property fit for purpose. Clients stay at the refuge for a few months at a time. Initially our refuge service was staffed by dedicated and incredible volunteers – thanks to community support, Mary’s now employs social workers with a specialisation in supporting victim-survivors of domestic or family violence. Volunteers continue to play an important role in our success, giving their time and expertise in other ways that support our operations.
We also provide advice, case management, referral, support services, counselling, and a range of therapeutic programs at our outreach service, the Daisy Centre. Clients can be referred or seek assistance from our social workers, whether they have left an abusive relationship or are considering their safe options.
Our community programs reduce harm for women and their children through early intervention, offering continuous support including education, advice and referrals tailored to clients’ needs. Programs include financial counselling, legal advice, trauma-informed group therapy and evidence-based activities to support wellbeing.
We’re fortunate to also have a transitional housing option for a client and her children for about 12 months at a time. This option is possible because of the generosity of one of our passionate supporter families. One client and her children can stay at Lydia House while she is supported by her caseworker to plan her family’s recovery and future.
One of our ongoing challenges is having sufficient funds to employ more specialist social workers so we can meet the increasing demand for our services. In the near future, we will need to develop larger premises to provide safe and appropriate services to more women and their children. So, the Green Moustache fundraising dinner on Saturday is a wonderful gift, thank you. We also want our community’s voice loud and clear on the need to eliminate violence against women and children; our annual Mary’s House Walk on 29th October from North Sydney is part of our advocacy and fundraising effort, saying “no to domestic violence and family violence in our community."
Can you share any specific success stories that highlight the positive outcomes resulting from your organization's intervention and support?
In the past twelve months, at Mary’s House refuge we have accommodated a client aged over 70 and have now found a rare opportunity for her to rent an affordable and safe home. The client had endured years of all forms of abuse in her marriage and was referred to us by a medical service.
Other clients at Mary’s House refuge have included a woman who gave birth to a baby during her stay, and a woman with three children aged under 10. As a result of our case management services, each of these women will now be living in safe locations, with safety plans and resources to move forward with their lives.
Just last week we connected with a new client through the Daisy Centre and already, we have been able to organise a safety check including a scan of her devices - we found she was being tracked extensively- a plan is now in place to fix that. The client has also been referred to two of our clinics.
When I think of positive outcomes, every story is different and every client is the leader of her own journey of recovery – but the broad outcomes we’re proud of are that our services are addressing a desperate need in the community that will save lives, give children a chance to recover and thrive, and empower women to make choices about their lives, their autonomy and safety, and their financial security.