Fashion designer tackles violence

Police officer Jennifer Bentley is one of the mentors taking part in Annah Stretton's RAW scheme. Photo / Alan Gibson

Designer Annah Stretton's latest project is a mentoring scheme for abused women

A mentoring programme aimed at helping women victims of domestic violence is the brainchild of fashion designer Annah Stretton.

The Reclaiming Another Woman (RAW) scheme pairs abused women with a female mentor for 12 months to help the women rebuild their lives.

Ms Stretton, who last night launched a new collection designed by her daughter Sam Stretton and Alice Kay to fund the not-for-profit organisation, was inspired to act after meeting domestic violence victims at Te Whakaruruhau Women's Refuge in Hamilton.

One of those victims was Lisa, who for 20 years was trapped in a cycle of drugs, alcohol and violence.

She left school at 16 without any qualifications to have a baby and fell into the abusive lifestyle.

But when Lisa, not her real name, was beaten almost to death she knew for the sake of her newest young son it was time to get out.

Now 36, Lisa sought help at Te Whakaruruhau, which led to a life-changing meeting.

Through the RAW programme she was coupled with mentor Jennifer Bentley, a Te Aroha police officer.

Lisa said her weekly mentoring sessions with Miss Bentley, 53, have completely changed her way of thinking.

"There would be no way in hell before ... that I would ever talk or train with a police officer. And now I don't hide anything from Jennifer."

Lisa said once she quit drugs and alcohol and surrounded herself with different people she realised her own self-worth. She now aims to become a personal trainer and she's learning as much as she can from Miss Bentley, a former personal trainer and event manager who spends time out of work training others.

The pair have been meeting for a month and now Lisa is enrolled at Literacy Waikato, to improve her reading comprehension so she can apply for a personal training course at Te Wananga O Aotearoa.

RAW has the backing of Te Whakaruruhau Hamilton service manager Ruahine Albert, who said there had always been a gap in the service once women re-entered the community, and many struggled.

"They don't even have a chance. On the off-week of benefits it's usually a struggle to survive."

She said RAW was breaking down barriers, getting the women into study they were previously declined and jobs with career potential.

As a result about 40 participants who were being mentored under the Waikato programme were excited about their future for the first time in years, Miss Albert said.

Ms Stretton set up the scheme after meeting wannabe fashion designer Krystal at the refuge, who she now mentors.

The RAW collection will be on sale in about a month at the project's base in Collingwood St, Hamilton.