When Statistics Don’t Tell the Whole Story

By Marilyn Matheson, Executive Director, Harmony House Shelter

As Ottawa marks its 200^th anniversary, many organizations are reflecting on growth, progress, and milestones. This year also marks 40 years since Harmony House began providing safety and support to women and children fleeing abuse. It is not a milestone we are celebrating. Marking four decades of service means acknowledging a harder truth: the need for safe shelter has not diminished.

Statistics can help us understand the scale of intimate partner violence, but they will never capture its full reality. Behind every number is a lived experience, often one that remains hidden. At Harmony House, our waitlist is consistently over 100 families. While that signals urgent demand, it represents only those who reach out to us. Many women and children never appear on waitlists at all. Some stay briefly with friends or relatives. Others rely on temporary or informal arrangements to remain safe. Their experiences are rarely counted.

When women and children arrive at Harmony House, they are often coming from moments of profound crisis. If their stories go unheard, the true scope of abuse in our community remains underestimated and so does the level of response required.

Harmony House currently operates 16 self-contained units: 11 one-bedroom, three two-bedroom, and two studios, one of which is accessible. Each bedroom is equipped with bunk beds to maximize space with a double bed on the bottom and a single on top. The reality is confronting. A woman with two children may share a bed with one of them. A woman with three children may sleep on the couch. Increasingly, we are seeing families with four, five, or six children, yet we have only three two-bedroom units. These physical limitations add strain to families already navigating trauma and instability.

When we do not have space, our Outreach team becomes a vital lifeline. Outreach staff work with women to develop safety plans and connect them with community supports so they are not left to navigate danger alone simply because shelter space is unavailable.

The demand for safe shelter continues to rise as housing insecurity, financial strain, and economic pressure increase risks within the home. As Ottawa marks two centuries, we must ask not only how far we have come, but who still lacks safety and imagine what is possible when support is within reach for every family.

At Harmony House, we are working to uncover the experiences statistics overlook. If you or someone you love has experienced domestic violence, we invite you to share your story confidentially at info@HarmonyHouseWS.com.

Because behind every number is a person. And every person deserves to be safe.

By the Numbers

7,840 intimate partner violence incidents reported by Ottawa Police in 2025.

4 femicides in Ottawa in 2025.

44% of women in Canada (6.2 million), aged 15+, report experiencing Intimate Partner Violence in their lifetime.

One woman or girl is killed every 48 hours in Canada.