Covington’s Purple Light Nights has grown by leaps and bounds.

In its third year, the event coordinated by the Covington Domestic Violence Task Force, has spread its message of remembrance of victims of domestic violence as well as awareness to 14 states.

Last year five states participated, according to Victoria Throm, Task Force director.

“I was really concentrating my efforts on the national campaign,” Throm said. “The exciting thing is I got a call from some folks in British Columbia … who are interested in starting a cross-border Purple Light Nights.”

Purple is the color the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence selected to represent domestic violence awareness and October is Domestic Violence Awareness month, so, when Throm came up with the idea three years ago it made sense to pair the concepts.

Started as a local initiative, the message of Purple Light Nights first spread across the state, then the country.

“The feedback I’ve gotten from the cities and the counties across the country is how cool it is and how simple it is because anyone can participate,” Throm said.

Participating is as simple as buying a purple light bulb or two and putting it in your porch light during the month of October to remember victims and help raise awareness.

Businesses are again sponsoring trees around City Hall this year to further promote the month-long effort with the cost to sponsor at $100 a tree.

“Any family or group can sponsor a tree, that includes us putting it up and taking it down, and there will be a sponsor card on the tree,” Throm said. “If we have enough sponsors we’ll do the roundabout tree that they light up during the holidays.”

There are eight sponsors on board now including the Covington Police Department, Friends of the Covington Library, Heritage Insurance, Kiwanis of the Foothills, Covington Employees Staff Fund, Valley Vehicle Licensing and Soos Creek Dental.

“Only two of those businesses were repeats,” Throm said. “Everyone else is new. I’m sure we’ll be getting more sponsors for street trees.”

Throm has also worked with area homeowners associations who have notified residents about efforts to do neighborhood campaigns.

“If a homeowner’s association has an interest, I would love to work with them on that,” she said.

Fire District 37 officials will also be putting up lights at trees around its Station 78 in Covington, Throm added.

In addition to more cities and counties in other parts of the country participating, Throm said, Gov. Chris Gregoire provided a proclamation in February declaring it Purple Light Nights Campaign Month.

“Councilman Wayne Snoey was instrumental in taking that to the legislature,” she said. “And that lends us some additional credibility.”

Throm is also pleased about the support received from Rep. Dave Reichert for Purple Light Nights.

“From my own personal life experience and my experience as a law enforcement officer, I know the far-reaching effects of domestic violence on a family and in a community,” Reichert said in a statement. “Domestic violence is a problem that must continually be addressed and one of the key ways to reduce its impact is for members of the community to take action.”

Thus far, Throm said, the month long campaign has had an impact.

“Last year parents of two women who had been murdered called me,” she said. “They were so thrilled that we remembered their daughters, to know that a community is still remembering the victims.”

And there have been many victims, Throm said, with 494 domestic violence related homicides from 1998 to 2008 in Washington state, with 137 of those in King County.

“That’s too many,” Throm said.

Selling bulbs and strings of purple lights — two for $5 or $30 for a string at Covington City Hall — is a fundraising effort for the Task Force, Throm said, and people often ask where does the money go.

The Task Force is a non-profit with 501(c)3 status. Everyone involved is a volunteer, including Throm, so all the proceeds benefit clients.

“We provided 60 bed nights for women and children over the last three years,” Throm said. “That means motel rooms because they could not find a shelter spot open. We’ve given gas vouchers and food bags which come from The Storehouse. It’s keeping victims from going back to their abuser or being out on the street.”

A few weeks ago, Throm received a phone call from a mother of five who had left her abuser behind in California, her youngsters ranging in age from 5 to 15 years old in tow.

“She had enough safety planning to get their clothes and Greyhound bus tickets and they headed out to Seattle,” Throm said. “She had some connections here but no one had enough room for her large family. She had been couch surfing… and she was now with nothing.”

Throm was able to get three nights in a hotel for the family and worked with Catholic Community Services to get three more.

“On the day she was supposed to leave the hotel they were able to find her a shelter apartment,” she said. “She called me back a week later and they were doing fine. Her kids had gotten into school, she was just a different person, and very, very thankful.”

Those success stories are why Purple Lights Nights is so important.

“You really are helping people and if people know that, then they’re more apt to support our work,” Throm said. “Awareness is part of what we do and so is education, but, I want it to be more than that.”

More information can be found at www.purplelightnights.org.