Local domestic violence advocates are looking to raise awareness with an event meant to illustrate just how widespread the problem they’re fighting is.

Santa Clarita Valley Domestic Violence Center staff and volunteers are hosting a Create a T-shirt event Saturday at the Savia Community Center in Newhall.

The event, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., allows participants to tell the stories of domestic violence by using symbolic colors to design T-shirts: white represents women who have died because of violence; yellow or beige represents women who have been battered or assaulted; red, pink, and orange are for survivors of rape and sexual assault; blue and green t-shirts represent survivors of incest and sexual abuse; purple or lavender represents women who have been attacked because of their sexual orientation.

The shirts will then be displayed at College of the Canyons, where officials from the college and the center hope to share the messages with students. The shirts offer the survivors a chance to share their story, as well as show others how widespread the problem is.

“It really has an effect on the students because they see how prevalent the issue of domestic violence really is,” said Linda Davies, the Domestic Violence Center’s executive director.

Once the T-shirts are decorated, they’ll be displayed Wednesday at College Of the Canyons.

Participants must bring a shirt to work on but materials for designing one’s shirt will be provided by the center.

Davies also mentioned that newcomers could expect a private meeting with music, in a quiet and inviting environment. Advocates from the center will be at the event for any of the participants to talk to. The DVC regularly holds events like this to bring awareness to domestic violence and give a voice to its many victims.

The Domestic Violence Center is a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping those facing domestic violence, for more information contact the center at 661-259-8175 or visit their website at dvc-scv.com.

The Savia Facility is located at 23780 Newhall Ave., in Newhall.