Education and awareness
Workshops, presentations, and interactive exercises that dispel the myths, start the conversation, and refuse to treat this as something we do not discuss.
Essex County, New Jersey
Love you, girl.
Three words friends say to each other every day. We built a foundation on them, because the friend who used to say them to us was killed by the person who was supposed to love her.
In memory of
Alice M. Jenkins
1962 – 2011
You can talk to someone right now
Free, confidential, and available every hour of every day.
Our mission
We empower victims, survivors, and advocates by educating and creating awareness of the devastating impacts of domestic violence, and we stand behind the organizations doing the daily work of counseling and outreach.
2011The year we lost Alice, and the year this work began
11Scholarship recipients to date
$44,000Awarded in scholarships to deserving students
1 in 4Women who will experience domestic violence in her lifetime
In the press
A Boutique With a Bigger Purpose
Vicinity's Local Heroes column visited South Orange to write about the boutique, the foundation behind it, and the friendship the whole thing was built on.
It is a place where style meets service.
What we do
Four kinds of work, one purpose
Everything the foundation does traces back to the same idea: what people do not know about domestic violence is what keeps it going.
Referral and safety planning
When someone reaches out, we connect them to local agencies who can assess their needs. While they wait for that appointment, we help them build a safety plan.
Scholarships
Awards for students active in community service heading to college, university, trade school, or a vocational program, renewable annually for up to four or five years.
Community support
Backing the organizations that provide counseling and outreach to people affected by domestic violence, and those that mentor young adults.
How it started
The call they did not finish
For thirty years, Betty Neal-Mantion and Alice Jenkins ended every phone call the same way. One would say "Love you, girl" and the other would answer "Love you back."
In February 2011 they talked for nearly an hour before the line dropped. They reconnected later that evening, but Betty was at a friend's house, so she said goodbye and hung up without it. They agreed to speak the next day.
The call that came the next day was from Alice's brother.
The number one thing we do is education and awareness. Based on statistics, we all know someone who has been impacted in some way. Betty Neal-Mantion, Founder and Executive OfficerRead the full story
Open through 31 August
Boutique, Events & More
A boutique that does more than sell things
In October 2023 we opened Love You Girl Foundation Boutique, Events & More on South Orange Avenue. An upscale thrift shop, where most of the donated clothing still has the tags on, and an event space that has held birthday parties, fundraisers, and bingo nights.
Our South Orange storefront closes on 31 August 2026. The shop moves online from September, and event planning comes to you.
Our South Orange storefront has closed. The shop is online now, and event planning comes to you.
Upscale thrift
Event planning
Donation funded
Survivor vouchers
October
Domestic Violence Awareness Month
Every October, the purple ribbon goes up. It exists because for most of the year this subject stays behind closed doors, and one month of everybody saying the words out loud makes it easier for someone to say them the other eleven.
Here is what taking part actually looks like.
Wear purple
Purple is the colour of this cause. Wearing it invites the question, and the question is the whole point.
Learn the signs
Most people cannot name what coercive control looks like. Half an hour of reading changes that permanently.
Say something
If you have been worried about someone, October is a reasonable excuse to ask. Express concern, listen, and do not judge.
Come by the boutique
Shop, donate clothing, or just come in for tea. Every dollar that crosses the counter goes back into this work.
In the community
Fourteen years of showing up
Expos, walks, workshops, awards nights, and a table with information on it wherever there is room for one.
Follow along
The work does not stop between events
@loveyou_girl01New arrivals at the boutique, dates for workshops, awareness posts through October, and the occasional photograph of a room dressed so well you would not guess it was a thrift shop on a Tuesday.
Take part
There is more than one way in
Give
Every dollar supports scholarships, workshops, and the community organizations we stand behind.
Donate clothing
Clean, current, good-condition clothing keeps the boutique stocked and puts survivors into interview-ready outfits.
Bring us to your group
Invite the foundation to speak at your school, workplace, church, or community organization.
Learn the signs
The most useful thing most people can do is recognize what abuse looks like before it escalates.