YWCA Oklahoma City will honor domestic violence victims and survivors at its 18th annual Wreath of Hope ceremony Thursday, Oct. 1, on the South Plaza of the Oklahoma State Capitol.

The public event begins at 10:30 a.m. and marks the start of Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Survivors, advocates, community leaders and service providers from across Oklahoma are expected to attend, according to the Journal Record.

The ceremony gives the community a chance to remember people killed by domestic violence and to recognize families still affected by it.

Oklahoma's domestic violence crisis lends urgency to the gathering. The state recorded 121 domestic violence homicides in 2023, a record high and a 16% jump from the prior year, according to figures from the Oklahoma Domestic Violence Fatality Review Board first reported by Oklahoma Voice. Oklahoma consistently ranks in the top 10 nationally for women killed by men in single-victim, single-offender incidents.

When the board released those numbers in February 2025, Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond called the trend tragic and that domestic violence deaths have been on the rise in Oklahoma, especially across the last five years.

YWCA Oklahoma City, founded in 1907, operates an emergency domestic violence shelter in Oklahoma County and provides crisis services for domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking.

The shelter's central role came into focus in July when a cooling system failure forced 55 survivors (28 adults plus 27 kids) to relocate during triple-digit heat, as KOCO reported. President and CEO Kristie Chandler told KOCO at the time that the organization had provided specialized housing since the 1970s.

"We're the place that people go," Chandler said during the July crisis.

Residents who want to attend the Oct. 1 ceremony can find details at ywcaokc.org. Anyone experiencing domestic violence or sexual assault can call YWCA Oklahoma City's hotline at 405-917-9922.