Katie Stewart graduated from high school less than three years ago.

She spends four hours a week helping battered women and their children from Douglas, Franklin and Jefferson counties. Stewart also gives up her Saturday nights to stay with them in a shelter.

Through donations, grants and United Way funding, Women’s Transitional Care Services Inc. provides staff and volunteers to run a shelter, peer counseling and advocacy for battered women and children, referred there from law enforcement, hospitals or other sources.

Founded in 1976, the area shelter was the first of its kind in Kansas. It provides services and shelter to 274 women and children a year. Its 24-hour crisis hot line is (785) 843-3333 or 1-800-770-3030.

“It happens a lot more often than I would have thought,” Stewart said. “A lot of them are really scary situations.”

Studying social work at KU, Stewart has become passionate about many issues, but she has drawn the most inspiration from her volunteer work at WTCS. She had a good home life growing up but wanted to help others in more difficult situations.

Explain the training process you finished last spring.

We learned about the cycle of violence and stereotypes and stigmas that go with domestic violence: Why some seek help and why some don’t. We talked about why some go back to their partners and the resources that are available in town for us to offer them.

Katie Stewart provides support to battered women and children at Women's Transitional Care Services Inc.

The house is at a confidential location. Explain what you do there.

Some (volunteers) prefer to do just the office stuff, like answering the phones. I personally like to get more involved with the women and do things with them, like hang out in the kitchen with them or play with their kids.

If they need rides to doctors appointments or to Social and Rehabilitation Services, we go take them or we go pick them up if they are coming into the shelter.

(The occupancy) fluctuates. The max we have in there is 22, and it varies. The first stay is 30 days, but you can get extensions and second stays. You can stay up to 90 days is the longest, but that’s rare.

What is your favorite aspect of the work?

I absolutely adore the children that come through. I have a lot of respect for them because in a lot of situations, they either witnessed the violence or been part of it. It’s fascinating to see how they are still able to be children after going through so much.

What is your role as a volunteer?

Mostly, a lot of it is just listening. A lot of the women just want to talk about what happened to them, and they need to hear that they did nothing to deserve what happened to them.

The hardest phone calls to take are the ones from women who blame themselves for what happened.

What is one suggestion you have to help prevent domestic violence?

I think they need to tell us at a younger age that this stuff does happen. That would be especially helpful for those kids that already experience it. If their moms go through it, they can understand they are not alone. It’s certainly not normal, but it does happen, and they do not need to be ashamed to ask for help.

What do you believe is the most important thing you have learned from your volunteer services?

Each individual woman on me, each individual story, and seeing each person’s strength as she gets through it. … And knowing that they can get through these terrible situations with their heads up and are willing to face whatever is left to come.