In our last newsletter, we shared the story of an old DVD discovered in Stairway’s archives. One of the films, The Girls from the Island, took us back 23 years to a group of young girls participating in one of Stairway’s early child sexual abuse prevention workshops. They learned about their bodies, personal boundaries, unsafe touch, and the importance of telling a trusted adult. We ended the article wondering what had happened to them. Did they remember the workshop? Had its lessons stayed with them? What kind of lives had they built?
Recently, they returned to Stairway.
They arrived with laughter, flowers and warm embraces. Two of the social workers who had worked with them 23 years earlier were there to welcome them, together with members of the Stairway team. Most still live and work on the island. Some had remained in contact, while others had not seen one another for years. But they had never returned to Stairway together. Much had changed. They looked around at the buildings and programs that had grown from the place they remembered before making their way back to the natural stage where they had once sat as children.
Looking Back
One of the first activities invited each woman to create a life-sized outline of herself and reflect on the girl she had once been. They drew and wrote about their childhood selves, the experiences they had carried and the strengths they still recognized within themselves. Some remembered fear and uncertainty; others spoke about courage, hope, friendship and the people who had helped them. There were tears, but also plenty of laughter and teasing as familiar personalities resurfaced. The girls who had once sat together on that stage were now women with work, families, responsibilities and struggles of their own.
Watching Their Younger Selves
The women then watched the original footage of the Girls from the Island. On screen were their younger selves, listening as facilitators explained that abuse was never a child’s fault and that children had the right to speak when something felt wrong. They also watched the stop-motion films on children’s rights they had created during their stay. The simple figures and stories brought back memories of learning, playing and finding creative ways to express difficult ideas. At first, peals of laughter filled the room as they recognized one another and remembered the films they had made.
Then the mood shifted.
Some became emotional watching the girls they had once been trying to understand experience no child should have to face. They also watched
Daughter, Stairway’s animated film about child sexual abuse, disclosure and the importance of believing and supporting a child. Messages they had first encountered as young girls now carried a different meaning as adult women, many with children and families of their own.
Their lives Now
The film, The Girl’s from the Island, opened a deeper conversation. The women remembered learning that they had rights, that the abuse committed against them was not their fault and that they were allowed to speak. But they also talked about their lives today. Many spoke about financial hardship, family responsibilities, relationships, parenting and the daily strain of trying to hold everything together. They listened to one another, offered comfort and recognized that, although their lives had taken different paths, they shared many of the same struggles. For some, returning to Stairway offered a rare chance to pause and speak honestly. The gathering was no longer simply a reunion with the girls they had once been. It became a safe space for the women they are today to be heard. Their stories are not simple stories of hardship followed by healing. There have been setbacks and new difficulties, but also love, family, responsibility, endurance and joy.
The Girl Who Spoke
One woman’s story had been especially important all those years ago. As a child, she found the courage to tell her teacher that she had been sexually abused. Her teacher believed her. Her mother stood beside her. Because the adults around her listened and responded, other girls also began to share their experiences. Twenty-three years later, she sat beside the mother who had supported her. Her decision to speak could not undo what had happened, but it meant she did not have to carry it alone. And in speaking up, she helped other girls understand that they could speak up too.
From Then to Now
Twenty-three years ago, Stairway taught child sexual abuse prevention through hand-painted flip-charts, group discussions and creative activities. The girls made their own films and stories to express what they were learning. Those early workshops helped shape the animated films, theater productions, training programs and e-learning courses Stairway uses today to teach children’s rights, child protection, online safety and abuse prevention. The tools have changed, but the purpose remains the same: helping children recognize abuse, understand that they are not to blame and find the courage to break the silence. The reunion reminded us of something else as well: listening should not end when a child grows up.
Twenty-three years ago, these women were given a space to speak as girls. Now they sat together once again—remembering, sharing, laughing, crying, and listening to one another. When the original film was made, no one knew where life would take them. Seeing them together again, we saw beyond the painful experiences that had once connected them. We saw women who had grown, struggled, loved, and built lives of their own. One girl spoke. A teacher believed her. A mother stood beside her. And other girls found the courage to speak. But something else began to happen during this reunion. As the women shared their memories, their struggles, and what they had learned along the way, it became clear that the voices they had found as girls still had something important to say.
Perhaps their story is only beginning again.
To be continued
