Domestic violence survivor to discuss memoir at Southern State

       Domestic violence survivor Marala Scott will discuss her memoir, “In Our House: Perception vs. Reality,” 6 p.m. Tuesday, March 9, in the Edward K. Daniels Auditorium on Southern State Community College’s Central Campus, 100 Hobart Drive, Hillsboro. The event is free and open to the public.

      As a writer, Scott teams with her husband, co-author Tre Parker, to revisit her painful childhood in an effort to bring more awareness to the issues of child abuse and domestic violence.

      “It’s the kind of story of what happens to children of abuse,” Scott said. “I’m living proof that you only hold on to pain if you choose to. It doesn’t have to follow you.”

      This chilling true story of a successful family reveals the hidden reality behind appearances. In the book, Colin is a brilliant, handsome and charming man to the outside world, recruited by both the CIA and IBM. With all his success, the perception is that he has it all. Instead the reality is a hellish nightmare of verbal and physical abuse for Alley, his wife, and their six children. Alley feels helpless to protect her children from Colin's constant attacks when three mysterious women visit her and promise that he will never hurt them again—if she gives them what they want. For the sake of the children, she agrees.

      By exposing the realities of her own childhood, Scott hopes to inspire and empower others.

      “The idea of how you forgive keeps coming up,” she said. “Oftentimes, we don’t want to forgive but until you do, it’s very hard to move on.”

      For her work in domestic violence awareness, Scott has received numerous certificates of recognition from the mayor of Columbus, Ohio House of Representatives, U.S. Senate and U.S. Congress, as well as writing awards from Premier Book Awards and National Indie Excellence Awards. She also is listed on Oprah Winfrey’s Angel Network.

      To learn more about Marala Scott’s work, visit www.inourhousebook.com. For more information about the March 9 speaking engagement, please call SSCC Director of Public Relations Kris Cross at 1-800-628-7722, ext. 2676 or kcross@sscc.edu.