To the Editor:

On Feb. 16, Sharon High School hosted two programs for Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month. 

The Clothesline Project is an exhibit consisting of T-shirts created by survivors of domestic violence and/or the loved ones and friends of victims of domestic violence. Survivors are men, women or children that have survived intimate personal violence, such as rape, battering, incest or child sexual abuse. A victim is a person who has died at the hands of their abuser. Some messages are encouraging and empowering, and some are the stories of the violence done against the person who created the shirt.

The exhibit which consisted of 160 shirts was presented by New Hope. They were assisted by members of H.U.G.S. Sharon and members of SADD to help hang the exhibit in the library. Students from SADD were a presence all day, handing out bookmarks with information regarding teen dating violence and having students sign the dating pledge.

In the auditorium, the play "Remote Control" was performed for the freshman class by members of Deana's Educational Theater. The play was sponsored by H.U.G.S. Sharon and totally funded by the Dedham Savings Bank.

This is an interactive play where one actor uses the "remote control" to speed-up, fast forward, and pause the action. The play deals with recognizing the warning signs of an abusive relationship, how to help a friend, how to safely break off the relationship, and resources to get help.

It was a day of bringing awareness and education to the issues of teen dating violence. For more information, please visit www.HUGS-Sharon.org.

Sue Robinson

H.U.G.S. Sharon