The numbers are startling: according to the National Domestic Violence Hotline, about one in three people have experienced sexual assault, physical violence and/or stalking by an intimate partner in their lifetime. Almost half of all men and women in the U.S. have experienced psychological aggression from a significant other. Overall, intimate partner violence affects about 12 million Americans every year. These are just a few of the statistics that keep Lori Sywensky up at night. Sywensky is the executive director of Turning Point of Lehigh Valley, a nonprofit social services agency that provides various resources to survivors of domestic and intimate partner abuse. “I have an underlying sense of stress that constantly runs through me just because I feel the weight of the world of what we do,” Sywensky says.
Turning Point got its start in 1976 as the “May Day Anonymous” hotline for local women ensnared in domestic violence situations. It was officially granted nonprofit status two years later and rebranded as Turning Point. The agency's first emergency shelter opened in Bethlehem in 1980, followed by a second, larger shelter in Allentown the following year. Although Turning Point has remained a constant (and ever-growing) presence in the Lehigh Valley since those early days, it's not unusual to come across longtime residents who've never heard of it. Sywensky herself was among them while she was growing up in Northampton. She didn't know it at the time, but their paths would converge years later, when a new chapter in her life brought her back to her old stomping grounds.
Following her graduation from Northampton Area High School, Sywensky knew she wanted to study psychology, but she wasn't sure how that would manifest as a career. She enrolled at Lock Haven University, where she found a mentor in social psychology courses and was introduced to the concept of programs like Turning Point. “I never even knew they had existed,” Sywensky says. Later, a position as a counselor for survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault opened up at the Wise Options program at the YWCA in Williamsport. Recalls Sywensky: “I thought, OK, I'll give it a try. And it ended up, that was life changing. That sort of started my trajectory.” She was still in her twenties when she became head of the program. “I like to say I was a really terrible director,” says Sywensky. “Certainly in looking back there were a lot of rookie mistakes that I made, and a lot of it was putting too much pressure on myself.”
In 2000 Sywensky moved on to a position with the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency, where she managed victims' services programs in the state. But soon her family was growing (sons Collin and Tyler are now 20 and 17, respectively; stepdaughter Taylor is 28; Sywensky is married to Joe Hoffman, Jr.) and she realized she wanted to come home to her support system in the Lehigh Valley. In 2006 she accepted a position with Northampton County's Department of Community and Economic Development. “It was the department where everything happened,” Sywensky says. “It was affordable housing, environmental issues and dealing with everything from stray animals to helping people expand their businesses.” She also served on the boards and committees of various organizations, including the Lehigh Valley Planning Commission, Community Action Committee of the Lehigh Valley, and the Lehigh Valley Community Land Trust. Both the job and the community involvement were fulfilling. And yet, she found herself reflecting on her previous work with survivors. “I was missing that opportunity to have that direct impact,” Sywensky says, “to be so in touch with the passion that comes with watching people thrive and do the day-to-day work.”
She told herself she'd consider rejoining the nonprofit sector if the opportunity should arise. Fast-forward to 2015, when she reached out to then Turning Point head Diane Zanetti to talk about grant funding. Recalls Sywensky: “When we connected [Zanetti] said, ‘are you calling because I'm leaving?' I was not aware she was leaving. I said, ‘no, but let's talk.'” The two chatted over coffee and Sywensky decided to throw her hat into the ring for the job. She says she figured she had nothing to lose: “If they want me, they want me. If not, I stay with the county and I'm very happy.”
They did want her. Sywensky officially took the reins in January of 2016. She was stepping into the top spot at an organization that had spent nearly four decades building up a whole host of services: safe houses, a help hotline, counseling services, legal advocacy and education programs. And yet, there was room for a little retooling. “In nonprofits in general we really try hard to do everything all at once,” Sywensky says. “And it was clear to me that there were some people wearing way too many hats. If we really want to provide a quality service, we have to stop and take a pause.” She wanted to focus less on numbers (how many people attended a community training session, for example) and more on general impact while always supporting Turning Point's mission to eliminate domestic and intimate partner abuse in the Lehigh Valley through survivor empowerment and community education and engagement.
Sywensky says a major priority during her tenure has been investing in direct client assistance. That can mean everything from providing financial counseling to helping survivors pay for rent or classes—even getting them a pair of shoes to start a new job. It's all about making it as easy as possible to navigate a new way forward after an incredibly dark and trying period. Researchers say it takes an average of seven attempts for a survivor to leave an abuser for good. “If you want to leave, that's one step, but if you want to stay out, there's a whole range of other things,” Sywensky says.
Our goal is to never turn someone away on the day that they call us.
On the list of future wants: bolstering community education. Sywensky says they'd like to create a training institute that teaches the signs of domestic and intimate partner abuse, which aren't always evident to the naked eye, as well as how to respond to it. Shelter space is a concern as well; Turning Point's safe house is consistently at capacity. “Our goal is to never turn someone away on the day that they call us,” Sywensky says. A capital campaign that Sywensky expects to go public next year will aim to address Turning Point's growing pains by raising funding for a new safe house and administration building that will centralize many of their services.
Beyond those big-picture goals, which are no doubt vital, there are little moments that Sywensky relishes. Although she's typically no longer involved in the counseling of survivors, she's often provided glimpses of the good work Turning Point is doing. Community members often take it upon themselves to raise money or buy supplies for Turning Point; she loves being on hand to collect those donations when they're brought to the administration building. “You couldn't trade that for anything, being able to see how generous the Lehigh Valley is and how much they're thinking of survivors,” she says. Sywensky is also afforded the opportunity to see how those same donations are brightening the lives of those who receive them. She recalls a visit from a woman with two little girls in need of new coats in tow. As they rummaged through the items, the girls had a ball staging an impromptu fashion show and sorting through the selection of toys and books. Sywensky says she knows the girls have a rough home life, but it's her hope that those brief, joyful interludes like what they experienced that day are what will stand out for them down the road. “I know that will have an impact. When they look back, they won't remember Turning Point and they won't remember me, but they'll remember that moment and hopefully feel compelled to share that.”
Domestic Violence Awareness Month
October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month (DVAM). Turning Point of Lehigh Valley will host its annual Survivor Vigil on Tuesday, October 24 at The Ice House in Bethlehem from 6–7 p.m. The Survivor Vigil is an evening dedicated to hope, healing and unity, honoring the strength and resiliency of survivors while commemorating the lives lost to domestic violence. This community-based event brings together over 150 individuals, businesses and community leaders every year.
Looking to support the mission of Turning Point of Lehigh Valley? Find their survivor wish list on Amazon. All items reflect the current needs of the organization's Safe House.
Turning Point of Lehigh Valley also relies on monetary donations. turningpointlv.org and click on the donate button to show your support. They also accept checks made payable to Turning Point of Lehigh Valley, Inc. These can be mailed to/dropped off at 444 E. Susquehanna St., Allentown, PA 18103.
24/7 Helpline: 610.437.3369 | Toll-Free: 877.438.4957
Published as “Insight” in the October 2023 edition of Lehigh Valley Style magazine.
