ATLANTA — Domestic violence impacts thousands of families in Georgia every year. For survivors, the trauma lingers long after the abuse ends.

This weekend, two survivors came together in Atlanta at the Crime Survivors Speak conference to share their stories of survival, support one another, and call for change.

Yolanda Carter and Yolanda Jennings share more than just a name. Though they live in different states, they’ve formed a long-distance bond through their shared experiences of domestic violence.

“I was brutally beaten with a hammer and left for dead,” Carter said. “I had to have 13 reconstructive surgeries. I lost my left eye.”

Jennings faced her own harrowing ordeal.

"I had to basically beg for my life because my children were in another room,” Jennings said.

For Jennings, the

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