11-03-2025
‘I realized I'm not alone' – 13th annual Women of Word performance provides catharsis for trauma victims
Words can be powerful, and Monday night some local poets tested just how powerful their words could be.
Dozens of community members gathered at Basement Transmissions on West 11th Street for the 13th annual Women of Word performance — An event that seeks to explore mental health and trauma through art.
'Mine started after I escaped. After I was out of my domestic violence situation, I started writing, and I was shoving them under a bed in a box, and my 17-year-old son at the time pulled them out and said, 'Mom, you could be helping people with these,'' said Thasia Anne Lunger, director, producer and performer.
Soon after, Lunger got a job telling her story through poetry at SafeNet Erie for eight years.
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Eventually, Women of Word was born — A performance where local poets can tell their own stories of issues from drug abuse to mental illness.
'Someone out there is going through it and thinking they're alone, and that's where I was. I thought, 'I'm the only one stupid enough to be in this situation and not get out of it,' but after I got out and after I started living the world and seeing what happens at SafeNet, I realized I'm not alone,' said Lunger.
The stage at Basement Transmissions is usually a place for artists and bands and acting, but Monday night people came to tell their stories and convey important messages.
'I owe it to my larger community, now that I'm safe, to talk about what I went through so that people who are still living in that can maybe latch on to some bit of hope, to help get through their own experience,' said Elyse Palmer, a poet.
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Palmer and seven other poets voiced their poetry on the stage, with many delivering their own stories that they wrote themselves.
Whether you're dealing with grief, mental illness, addiction or abuse, the cast members said you are not alone.
And if you or anyone you know is dealing with something right now, contact one of the many organizations who are willing to help:
Veteran's Medical Center: Physical and Mental Health – 814-868-8661
SafeNet Women's Shelter Information: 814-455-1774
Safe Journey Women's Shelter: 814-438-2675
National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-7233
Safe Harbor Wellness Center: Mental Health: 814-838-3401
Crisis Intervention: 814-456-2014
Women's Care Center: 814-868-4050
Saint Patrick's Haven Men's Shelter: 814-454-7219
City Mission Grace House: Women's Shelter: 814-452-4421 x402
City Mission Samaritan Care: Men's Shelter: 814-452-4421 x239
Crime Victim Center of Erie: 814-455-9515
Esper Treatment Center: 814-459-0817
Erie Outpatient Treatment Center: 814-456-2203
Drug Rehab Erie PA: 814-201-7588
Drug Rehab Centers Erie PA: 814-651-9437
White Pine Center for Healing: 814-461-5617
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