By Daniel Kanu
The Sholly Serenity Place, a Lagos-based home offering accommodation and multifaceted support to survivors of gender-based violence, has received the ‘Most Responsive NGO’ award from the Lagos state government.
The Sholly Place is one of the two dozen women’s shelters for abused women and children in Nigeria.
The ceremony and award were part of the climax marking the ‘Domestic Violence Awareness Month’ by the state’s Domestic and Sexual Violence Agency (DSVA).
“We celebrate this unique initiative in light of the globally commemorated “16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence” (November 25 to December 10). “ the Foundation noted in a statement made available to Sunday Sun.
“The Foundation is deeply appreciative of this recognition by the Lagos State Government especially the DSVA. Their support and collaboration have been amazing. We look forward to greater collaboration as we continue in our service to the vulnerable members of our society, God helping us,’ noted Mrs. Essien-Nelson.
According to her, “Our goal is to make the world a happier place, one smile at a time, and since April 2017 we have done that in different ways: providing monthly allowances to vulnerable ladies and families for periods ranging from six to 12 months; the rehabilitation of a wheel-chair bound beggar from the streets of Lagos Island back to his family home in Abeokuta and the provision of Covid-19 relief packages to several families in need every month since September 2020 to date. We have also awarded two academic scholarships”.
Betty Abah, Lagos-based women and children’s rights activist, also praised the Lagos government for giving the well-deserved award, just as she commended the work of the foundation which she described as God-sent.
The organization said its objective is to bring smiles to the faces of people in need (especially women and children) by providing financial, emotional, and spiritual support.
In June 2021, the Foundation opened the doors of the Sholly Serenity Place, a safe home for vulnerable women and survivors of domestic abuse/violence.
The shelter also known as Sholly’s Safe Home provides temporary accommodation and feeding free of cost for its residents. It seeks to create an enabling environment where residents feel loved and cared for in a way that re-ignites hope in them for their future.