Yasemin Gezici, the story of a woman who found her sense of purpose in life at the Adana Women’s Life Centre

After the 2023 earthquakes, women and girls across the affected region saw their daily lives profoundly disrupted. Safe spaces became scarce, access to psychosocial support was limited, and essential services were often out of reach. In this difficult period, women’s organizations played a vital role in helping women reconnect with life and with one another. One such response was the establishment of the Women’s Life Centre, established in Adana by the Association for Women’s Freedom and Equality (KÖVED), a partner of UN Women. 

Yasemin Gezici says her life began to change the moment her path crossed with the Adana Women’s Life Centre. Now 33 and a mother of two, she says that only after coming to the centre that she fully realized the weight of the invisible burden she had been carrying for years.

Born as the eldest daughter of a family originally from Mardin, Yasemin Gezici grew up in a family where marriages between close relatives were common and where responsibilities were placed on her from an early age. Although she earned a university degree in public administration, her marriage in 2016 and the birth of her two children gradually pulled her away from working life. Over time, her world became increasingly confined to the home.

For years, Gezici says she lived with feelings of loneliness, exhaustion, and worthlessness. Caring for her children and managing household responsibilities left her disconnected from social life and with little space for herself. When her connection to the outside world was nearly severed, she discovered the Women’s Life Centre near her home.

The Centre soon became a turning point for Gezici. For the first time in years, she found a space where she could breathe, speak openly, and feel understood. Gezici began attending training sessions on women’s health, child marriage, violence, rights, and access to public services. Each session, she says, opened a new window. 

“For example, I didn’t know that boys also need cancer screening. That was a big realization for me, especially for my son. I learned how breast cancer can be detected through self-examination, how reproductive health tests are done… I learned all of it,” says Gezici.

One topic that affected her most was the prevalence of child marriage and marriages between close relatives in the region. For the first time, she learned about the long-term impacts of these practices on women’s health, education, and safety - practices that had long been normalized in her community.

“Lack of education, early marriage, girls being taken out of school - all of these things devalue women. Now I can explain this to the women around me,” she says. 

Gezici says she felt especially supported by Nefel Turga, a staff member at the centre. 

The environment that brought women together at the centre also touched the lives of the women around Yasemin Gezici. “Once I started going, I began to socialize again. I laughed, I talked. Then my mother, my cousins, my aunts started coming with me. We all have our own stories. When we talk, we realize we are not alone,” she says.

The Women’s Life Centre played a defining role in helping Gezici reconnect with life. She witnessed firsthand the healing power of solidarity among women. Today, she’s not only a participant at the centre but also an active volunteer. As a health mediator for girls, she shares what she has learned with women in her neighbourhood, raises awareness, and helps more women join the centre. 

The journey that began at the Women’s Life Centre has allowed Yasemin to carry hope for herself and for the women around her.

Implemented by the Association for Women’s Freedom and Equality (KÖVED) and Women’s Coalition in cooperation with the Adana Metropolitan Municipality Department of Women and Family Services, the Adana Women’s Life Centre reaches hundreds of women each month. It provides inclusive and accessible spaces for women, girls, and their families, offering psychosocial and legal counselling services, empowerment-focused workshops, skills-building activities, and community gatherings. 

The centre also offers facilities such as laundry areas, kitchens, children’s playrooms, and counselling spaces, equipped with essential equipment and furnishings provided by UN Women through the “Women’s and Girls’ Lifesaving Access to Protection Services in the Aftermath of the Earthquake” project, implemented with the financial support of the Government of Japan. This support helped meet the high demand from local communities and ensured the sustainable operation of the centre. 

KÖVED also operates another Women’s Life Center in Samandağ, Hatay, in cooperation with the Samandağ Women’s Solidarity Foundation.