Domestic violence is silent and deadly, and one woman is on a mission to end that silence.

Victoria Throm is the president of the Domestic Violence Task Force. Its message is “Domestic violence has no place in our community,” according to Covington’s website.

Throm said purple is the symbolic color of domestic violence, which is why the idea of Purple Light Night came to mind. The idea also came from a small city she used to live in that did something similar.

“I thought Purple Light Night had a good ring to it,” she said.

For the entire month of October, Domestic Violence Awareness Month, people of Covington and other cities that choose to participate will have purple lights on front porches or in trees to represent this awareness month.

According to Throm, since she and her task force started their Purple Light campaign, over 32 other states and even three other countries (Canada, England and Guam) have started lighting purple lights in October to honor domestic violence victims.

Last Saturday, Sept. 30, was the 11th time Covington has had this night to honor those who were or are being effected by domestic violence.

Within the first year, Throm said she got a call from three parents who lost their daughters to domestic violence and told her, “Thank you for not forgetting our girls.”

Throm was a victim of domestic violence herself, which is why she wanted to do something about it. This topic is very near and dear to Throm’s heart. She understands what victims are going through or have gone through.

“I am a survivor of domestic violence, so I know how I felt and I know that so many people are living with it or are coming out of it and I wanted to honor them,” Throm said with tears filling her eyes. “(I want to) change society, domestic violence is not appropriate.”

She said to be part of something so big and to have so much support has been “amazing and shocking.” She said it’s amazing to think that something so small could mean so much.

Throm said one of the biggest goals of the campaign is to speak out. By this she means if you hear a domestic dispute, don’t ignore it, bring light to the situation and call 911. She said the more the community talks about it openly the better.

“We want to show the community we do not accept that, we want people to come forward,” Throm said.

The money that is raised during Purple Light Night goes to the victims involved with domestic violence.

According to Throm, the money can go towards “safe nights,” which is where the task force pays for a hotel voucher to allow that person who is being victimized a way out if the shelters are full. The money can also go towards rent of an apartment if a person is just starting on their own.

“I want our task force to be active with the victims,” she said.

Every year during Purple Light Night, Throm is thrilled with the turnout of the community that participates. This year, they had a 5K walk/run to raise money, but every year they have a tree lighting at the Don Henning Roundabout. Businesses in this area will sometimes pay $100 to have a smaller tree near City Hall be lit with the business’s name under it to show they support this cause.

“We are continually growing every year, the people coming out, (it’s) just a great community,” Throm said. “It’s a passion, it’s a labor of love and I don’t really look at it any differently.”