Finding a way out is solving the problem.

The public association "Business Women's Club" has begun implementing a project to help women in difficult situations

This can happen to anyone. When life leads you into a dead end, from which it seems there is no way out. When your family doesn't understand you, and the closest person turns out to be someone completely different from who you thought they were. When it seems that all the good things are left in the past. Most often, such problems snowball. In such situations, even the smallest trouble can knock you off track for a long time. In such situations, help from others can be just what you need. But it's not in the habits of Slavic women to ask for help. It's time to change those habits.

– Our organization is launching a new project aimed at providing socio-economic support to women in difficult situations, explains Larisa Istomova, chairwoman of the public association "Business Women's Club". – Today, the issue of domestic violence is being raised more and more often in society. Our program is designed for those women who have suffered economic, physical or sexual harassment from their partners. But the project allows us to provide assistance not only to victims of domestic violence, but also to other target groups. Women who have lost their jobs a few years before retirement, single mothers who don't have enough money for their child and whose ex-husbands chronically fail to pay alimony can find themselves in a difficult life situation. Or a woman who has been on maternity leave for several years and finds it difficult to find a job. But most often, those who come are those with a whole range of problems. And our task is to unravel this tangle thread by thread. On the one hand, we can help a woman on a purely everyday level, and on the other, we can teach her to cope with the current situation herself.

Social workers, psychologists, lawyers, attorneys, and financial literacy consultants can work with women who seek help at the organization's office. Each specialist gets involved with an individual as needed. A psychologist helps restore emotional balance, a social worker not only handles a specific case and helps form positive orientations, but can also help on a purely everyday level – looking after a child if a woman needs to go to work. A lawyer will explain the rights and help prepare the necessary documents, and a financial literacy consultant will teach how to manage even a modest budget rationally. Sometimes a woman doesn't even realize her potential. That's why specialists look not only at what profession is listed in the diploma, but also at all sorts of hobbies: sometimes a simple hobby can become an additional, or even the main source of income.

– We are not a government organization, so we can work on the terms of anonymity, – comments Larisa Nikolaevna. – But at the same time, we work closely with government agencies. And when we see that the problem is a bit deeper, that a woman, for example, needs a job or needs to be placed in a crisis room, we contact the employment center or the Territorial Center for Social Services. We are not competitors by any means, but rather partners. Because we have the same goal – to help a person who is in a difficult situation.

The new project of the Business Women's Club is essentially another door that one can knock on if she cannot cope with the deluge of problems on her own. And the more of these doors there are, the greater the chances that a person will not reach the very edge and will receive timely help before it is too late to help.

The project of the Business Women's Club "Support for the socio-economic rights of women in Brest who are in a difficult life situation" is being implemented within the framework of the program "Strengthening the potential of joint initiatives", which is funded by the Eurasia Foundation with the funds from the United States Agency for International Development. This project is a good opportunity for the NGO "Business Women's Club" to follow its mission: "We promote the enhancement of the role of women in society, unlocking their life potential, and professionally assist in the realization of the civil and social rights of women and their families".