The atmosphere was solemn Friday as the clock struck noon and rang out on the Riley County Courthouse Plaza.
The clock’s bells reverberated off the metal of a dozen red silhouettes of domestic violence victims, each with a plaque around their necks describing why they’re represented by art instead of their living physical bodies.
For years the Riley County Domestic Violence Task Force has performed this ceremony every October, which also happens to be National Domestic Violence Awareness Month.
It also comes 24 hours after the country was shaken by another mass shooting — another violent act — that took the lives of a dozen more in Roseburg, Ore.
The air was fresh with the terror of a violence people on the courthouse plaza were already far too familiar with.
“Honestly, the importance of this is to acknowledge and remember the domestic violence that’s in our community,” said Adam Johnson, task force chairperson and a clinical social worker for Pawnee Mental Health Services in Manhattan. “It’s a way for all of us to remember, to learn from and to grieve.
“The main philosophy of what we’re trying to do is to echo their stories and remember their stories.”
This year, before Johnson read the name and story for each victim/silhouette, special guests Curt and Christie Brungardt of Hays were invited to speak.
The Brungardts are the parents of Jana Mackey, who was 25-years-old when her ex-boyfriend murdered her in 2008.
Mackey — who from 2004-2006 served as a lobbyist in Topeka for the Kansas National Organization for Women — was also one of the silhouettes, closest to the podium.
The Brungardts told the 20-30 supporters, friends, family members and onlookers that their daughter “was awesome.” Their voices were calm, strong, cheerful and hopeful. They talked about Jana’s desires to help women and her decision to study law at KU.
Christie mentioned her worries about her daughter’s boyfriend and her relief when she dumped him.
Then Curt recalled the phone call he received when a sheriff told him she’d deceased.
Since Mackey’s death, the Brungardts started “Jana’s Campaign” and have toured the nation speaking out against domestic violence and destructive relationships.
“We’re super excited to be here,” Curt said after the ceremony. “We consider Manhattan our second home since we both got our college degrees here. We speak all around the country, but it’s great when folks around Kansas want us to be a part of this. Jana was a Kansan.”
Curt said Friday’s acknowledgement of domestic violence on the courthouse plaza and the red silhouettes standing among them brought a special sense of poignancy.
“When you see the silhouette and here’s a description of Jana and what happened to her… that makes it awful real,” he said. “It makes it tough. But it also makes it powerful.”
Curt also said ceremonies are important in bringing the issue in front of people.
“Research shows that once every 13 days a woman dies as a result of domestic violence in the state of Kansas,” he said. “So we need to be aware of that in this state and do whatever we can to make sure those numbers start to drop.”
More information on the the Riley County Domestic Violence Task Force can be found by calling their office at 785-539-7935. Further details about Mackey and the Brungardts can be found by visiting their website at www.janascampaign.org.
