Merrillville, Ind.-based Centier Bank donated $1,000 to the domestic violence shelter Stepping Stone Shelter for Women to fund shelter services, provide meals, and keep the organization’s programs going.
Centier Bank financial education Ambassador Mike Bober announced the donation to the shelter’s interim executive director, Deb Varnak, on Sept. 30 during his monthly radio broadcast. The donation coincides with October being Domestic Violence Awareness Month.
“Obviously domestic violence or financial abuse is a pretty impactful topic,” Bober said. “I think everybody either knows someone who has gone through it or has gone through it themselves. I was approached by Centier’s financial education coordinator, Lauren Zurbriggen, about having this discussion. We all had a very real, raw, and informative conversation on the air, which drew in a lot of listeners.”
Zurbriggen noted that “financial abuse is a common tactic that’s often used by abusers in an unhealthy relationship to gain power and control over their spouse or victim. This is very powerful because it can be detrimental to someone’s ability to provide for themselves and it can really impact their financial future negatively.”