Athena Gough has been fighting to stay safe for more than a decade, and Community Legal Aid has been by her side all that time.
Most recently, legal aid attorney Jeanne Charles helped Athena successfully obtain another renewal of the civil protection order against her abusive ex-husband.
“Jeanne helped me secure 10 more years of my protection order and has been such a rock in helping me navigate further protection orders,” Athena said. “In Ohio, you have to go back every five years to try to renew your order, and the process is a bit scary and can be paralyzing.”
Athena is a grateful client who has served on the Community Legal Aid Board of Trustees since 2019. She credits Community Legal Aid’s help with making it possible for her to improve her job prospects and find better housing for herself and her two daughters.
“When I first came to legal aid, it was right after I had to report my ex-husband to police for violating the domestic violence protective order,” she said. “When he was arrested, I decided to go to the courthouse and look into filing for divorce because I thought it would send a more solid message. But just the cost of filing paperwork myself would cost close to $300. While I was making enough money to take care of my kids and my family, I didn’t have the money to file for divorce. I walked out of the courthouse feeling a little scared.”
Then she remembered that Community Legal Aid had successfully helped others she knew. Athena thought she made too much money to qualify for help, but once she went through intake, she found she did qualify and could be helped.
“My legal aid attorney was kind and strong,” she said. “It’s terrifying to go into courts on your own without the knowledge of what you need to say and what you need to do to get a better outcome.
“It’s incredibly empowering to have someone there who knows the system, who is helping you speak up for yourself,” she added.
"Athena is courageous and resilient in ways that no person should have to be,” said Attorney Charles. “I am so proud to have had the opportunity to stand alongside her on multiple occasions. Her story illustrates that for many of our clients, we can do more than solve one legal problem. This is one of the many reasons legal aid is so important to our communities."
Want to learn more about Athena’s story and the importance of legal aid in our communities? Listen to her in an episode of the “Talk Justice” podcast produced by the Legal Services Corporation.