MONROE, CT — Masuk High School’s freshman class of over 260 students rose up from the stands of Benedict Field and walked down to the track Monday morning, beginning their transformation from bystanders to “upstanders.”
During Masuk’s sixth annual Walk A Mile in Her Shoes event, Scott Redfern, a volunteer for The Center for Family Justice, had just explained how an upstander is someone who witnesses someone being mistreated and speaks up for them.
“It’s so important for us to speak up,” he said, while suggesting a student who sees friends mistreat their partners, say, “hey, that’s not cool. That’s no way to treat your partner.”
Masuk’s Walk A Mile in Her Shoes leads up to the main event in Fairfield this Saturday.
On Monday, Redfern was accompanied by Liv Gamsu, a violence prevention educator for CFJ, Jessica Levine, CFJ’s manager of prevention and community engagement, and several other volunteers.
Masuk Assistant Principal Ian Lowell said his school’s Walk is something it does with the Freshmen Rise Up program, which meets during a morning flex period.
“The Center for Family Justice is an organization that is here to help victims of domestic violence and to prevent victimization … so it is a valuable and noteworthy organization right here in our community that helps families in Monroe and several other towns nearby,” Lowell told his students seated in the stands.
Levene said she and Gamsu visit schools to talk to students about healthy relationships and teen dating violence.
“Unfortunately, it is something that does happen,” Levene said of dating violence, “so we love to come out and educate you, because that way we can help prevent it. We want to keep you safe.”
She said they try to raise awareness of the issues, as well as the free and confidential support services the center offers to those who need it, including victim advocacy, legal assistance and safe housing. CFJ strives to educate the public, for prevention and to help victims heal.
The Center for Family Justice serves the communities of Monroe, Trumbull, Easton, Bridgeport, Fairfield and Stratford.
Those who are in crisis and need help can call CFJ’s 24/7 hotlines: Domestic violence: 203-384-9559, sexual assault: 203-333-2233, Spanish: 888-568-8332, text: (888) 999-5545.
Masuk’s Walk
On Monday morning, Monroe Police Officer Brooke Larsen, who is Masuk’s school resource officer, and Det. Stacy Cascante held the CFJ Walk A Mile in Her Shoes banner, while leading students in laps around the track.
Retired Monroe police detective, Nicole Buckley, who was heavily involved with CFJ while serving the town, also assisted with the Walk.
Masuk and Fairfield Prep are the only high schools that have their own Walk A Mile in Her Shoes. Lauren Iverson, a teacher, started Masuk’s event six years ago.
“I thought kids should be involved earlier,” she said of education efforts, while watching her students walk around the track. “I used to teach at New Milford and they had a domestic violence center that helped a lot of students.”
When she came to Masuk, Iverson said she noticed how CFJ has a similar mission and was amenable to supporting an event at her school.
Last year, Masuk decided to have its Walk through the Freshmen Rise Up program, so more students could participate.
“I think a lot of students who need help weren’t coming to the Walk,” Iverson said.
Since Masuk’s event began, she said a student, who participated and passed on CFJ’s phone number to a friend, came up to her to express gratitude for the program. Another told Iverson she realized she was in an unhealthy relationship.
In addition to hosting its own Walk, Iverson said Masuk teachers make donations to CFJ to support its work. Iverson participates in the main Walk in Fairfield every year, bringing a few students along.
Lowell said he thought Monday’s event went well, while noting how attentive students were.
“We would hope an organization like this wouldn’t have to exist,” he said of CFJ. “But we’re happy it does for those who need it.”
Redfern of Monroe, whose two children had graduated from Masuk, serves as a mentor to youth who were victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. He is also a member of the White Ribbon Campaign, a group of male volunteers and community leaders committed to taking a stand against gender-based violence.
“The kids were attentive,” Redfern said Monday. “Hopefully, the message will set in with them and they’ll remember it when it’s time to do the right thing. I hope they will do the right thing.”
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