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MARQUETTE -- "Denise" is not her real name and she doesn't want to be identified, but she wants her story to be told here in the Upper Peninsula.  She's the survivor of domestic abuse.

She was young, only 17 years old, when she met her boyfriend, an older man.  “He pointed a gun to my head,” recalls Denise.  “He was really drunk and on drugs."

That was four years ago.  Now at the age of 21, Denise is learning a hard lesson.

“I felt like it needed to happen and stuff,” Denise says.  During their three years together, their relationship had become increasingly abusive.

“I found pictures on his phone and it started a huge argument,” Denise explains.  “Then he started hitting me and stuff like that.”

Denise is not alone; statistics show that nearly one-third of women report being physically abused by a husband or boyfriend at some point in their lives.

“It’s actually amazing the similarities in the stories,” states Program Director Melissa Arbelius of The Women’s Center.  “They're all different, yet they all have real similar traits--its power and control of one person over another, and it comes in many different forms.”

The Women's Center provides services to approximately 1,000 women annually.

During the 2007-2008 fiscal years, advocates responded to more than 1,900 calls from individuals seeking information for a family member, friend, colleague or acquaintance.

Denise was referred to The Women's Center a little less than a year ago.  She now attends twice a week for counseling.

Denise has had no contact with her ex-boyfriend, who is in jail.  Now, she says, The Women's Center has helped make her a stronger person.

“I'm developing myself and getting myself on the track,” Denise commented.  “I need to be...to heal, and be a survivor, because I've survived so much in my life.”