Kelly Somoza, whose ex-boyfriend viciously attacked her three years ago and left her fully disabled with a metal plate helping holding her left eye socket and facial nerves together and traumatic brain injuries, said the Womens Resource Center was at her home offering assistance within a week.

And when she got in trouble with drugs while adjusting to a new life on full disability, it was The Harbor where she completed more than 100 hours of community service, using her skills as a former graphic designer at City Lumber and all-around Rosie the Riveter to paint and create signs for the agencys headquarters in the Norblad Building.

Now Somoza, who has more than 400 volunteer hours helping fix up the Van Dusen Building for The Harbor, said she hopes to help the agency empower women through teaching them repair and other life skills.

That way, they can help others find their empowerment like they helped me, said Somoza, a mother of three whos already learned the skills to maintain her own home.

She, The Harbors maintenance person Chris Boggs and a group of volunteers have been fixing up the basement of the Van Dusen Building into an area to repair and process donations, wash clothes and provide a workshop space for survivors to kickstart their homespun businesses.

Boggs said that teaching life skills even something as simple as refurbishing a table or fixing a television builds the self-esteem that is crucial to helping survivors move beyond the victim mentality.

Creating economic stability for survivors is a national trend, said The Harbors Executive Director Julie Soderberg, whos in the midst of creating a new strategic plan for Deja Vu, which might even change names as a consultant helps drum up ways to connect the thrift store with the community and vise versa.

Soderbergs been adopting ideas shes seen in Central America and from Wider Opportunities for Women (www.wowonline.org), a 50-year-old advocacy group for women in the workforce. One of her most recent entrepreneurs is Carol Edwards.

When I first went through those doors, I was ready to end my life, said Edwards, who had gone through successive abusive, belittling relationships. The Harbor, she said, was there for her in the long term, providing her therapy and medical care, helping her find housing and buy furniture and other daily essentials. Now theyre providing her a space to create her recycled art accessories, such as earrings and purses.

Theyre there for long term support, said Edwards, whose creations, along with those of other survivors, can be found at Deja Vu.