Hi, My name is Saylen Leigh Steele, and I'm fifteen years old.

I'm starting a charity project, that will last all this summer.

About a week ago, I volunteered to go and hang out with some of the teenaged girls down at the Battered Women's Shelter. [link] I met some girls there who told me their stories, and I was absolutely shocked.

One girl, who asks to remain anonymous, told me that her father had neglected her for ten years, then sexually and physically abused her when she turned eleven. She lived through this torture for five more years, before finally admitting to a school guidance counselor that she wasn't safe at home.

Another girl and her mom told me that her father was an alcoholic, and had regularly beaten both the girl and her mother for three months.

If that doesn't hit close enough to home for you, read this. This is from a note I received from a deviant who wishes to remain anonymous, telling me her story.

I was dating and living with this guy for about 2 years. He always had a bad temper, but never hit me. He of course would call me bitch a lot, and make sure to make me feel like shit as often as possible. I am not sure why I didn't leave him then...I guess I didn't think it was bad with the name calling, and finding my own place with not much income is near impossible.

Another bad thing was that he was very financially controlling. He had a bank account in his name, and another in his name for me. I had to give him any money I came by and had to account for anything spent. Even though we shared a place, I wasn't allowed to see or talk about bills or even know what we paid for anything.

Before I knew it, I got pregnant. I was happy about this, because I always wanted a child, and because in my depressed state it would mean something that would love me no matter what. My boyfriend wasn't pleased and refused to believe it was his. He kept calling me a cheat.

Within the first 4 months of my pregnancy I got very ill. I had preeclampsia, and was hospitalized for most of my pregnancy. My kidneys failed over a month before my son's due date and I was induced. Luckily, he was born healthy, just a bit small, and I, after staying in the hospital for a few more weeks, was fine. Life went on, and I was the only caregiver for my son.

Because of pressure from him, we got married 2 months after our sons birth. Now my husband, still didn't help out whatsoever with our son, saying it was the woman's job to take care of the child, cook and clean.

We got very tight on money after my son was 9 months and I had to pick up a job. Now I worked nights, and my husband had to care for our son at night, while I took care of him during the day while my husband worked.

This was when the hitting started. I assume it was because my husband didn't like to do anything but play video games and sit on his computer all day...and now that he had to help out, he was angry at my inability to somehow work full time, and care for child, and cook and clean...

It was always over something stupid...like one time he bought an electric stapler that we really couldnt afford. I got mad and told him to return it..so he decided to shut me up by slapping me.

Another time he hit me because I left an open soda can on the counter....another time because the fridge was left open..even though he was the one who left it open..it was my fault somehow.

It went from slaps to punches and gradually got worse. I had to hide myself at work, wearing long sleeves and covering myself in makeup. If a bruise was seen, I always had a dumb excuse...one of the stupidest was that my one year old bit me...

One day he decided to leave my son in a poopy diaper for a long time which resulted in a bad rash...This was when I started to realize something was wrong...It is funny how when it was me he was hurting, it was okay, but now he was starting to hurt our son. He also decided on another day to not feed our son while I was at work. 8 hours of not feeding a 15 month old child.
I decided to try and call some of my friends to try to avoid my husband. I asked if I could hang out with them and bring Hunter...and so I buried myself in running and hiding on him.

My husband assumed I was cheating, so it got worse. Eventually one of my friends noticed a bunch of bruises on my arm and back..I tried to blame it on tripping..but failed. It wasn't the first time he saw me with bruises. He started asking questions until I cried and told him what was happening. by this time, 2 friends found out and told em I should leave. I contacted the Interval House Shelter in Hartford CT and told them what had happened. I left on March 3rd of this year and went to the shelter with my son, and the clothes on my back.

I stayed there for 2 months or so, and started to get myself back on my feet...I got a car, and my husband filed for divorce only a day after I left. Wound up he already was planning on filing before I had left him. I had to get a restraining order after he kept following me and trying to contact me. He, in the restraining order hearing had said this:"Well, i hit her, but it wasn't that hard". Awesome. My order was granted because of that, and I struggled on. Eventually he found where the shelter was, and I had to leave in a rush out of fear of me and my son getting killed. It is not uncommon for an abuser to actually murder his wife or victim after they stood up to them. I ran to a friends house and hid there for a few weeks.

After a while, the court ordered that I get to move back into my old apartment and my husband had to leave. He of course cleaned out all of my stuff and had thrown in away by that time.

It has been about a month since I moved back in...I am still in fear of every day, worrying that he will come and reprimand me for my actions. I am in counseling, and trying hard to heal myself. It has been very difficult, since I hardly have any money, and some days I go without food. I always make sure my son eats...even if that means myself sacrificing a meal. I am still in the divorce and custody battle, which is difficult, since my husband has a pile of lawyers, and I only have one which isn't a very good one...

Everyday I grow stronger, and I hope, that women can be strong and leave like I did. Even if he only had hit you once...once is more than enough, and there is never an excuse.

Thank you for sharing that with us, and we're all praying for you and your boy to regain strength and live happily for the rest of your lives.

These things seem like they don't affect you, but remember, if you're a teenager, there are kids your age who have been beaten, verbally abused, and taken advantage of by people who were supposed to love them. If you're older, think about your childhood, and all of the memories you share with your parents. These children will never have memories like those.

I will be collecting all of the money that these prints make over the summer, and at the end of the summer, donating all of it to the Battered Women's Shelter in my area.

Please add these to your favorites if you decide to buy something. Every cent counts, it doesn't matter how big or small the donation is.

Special thanks to *almalobana, ~MasterpieceImaginary, =WishOnAStar220, =onesixone, and `DWALKER1047 for their support in the early stages of my project.

Thank you so much, and have a good summer.

~Saylen Leigh Rose