The Zonta Club of Melbourne, USA, District 11, participated in a variety of activities during the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence.

Inspired by other  Zonta clubs around the world that lit up buildings and monuments in orange, club members asked business owners to light up their storefronts in orange to show their support for the Zonta Says NO to Violence Against Women campaign. They passed out fliers and were featured in the local newspaper. The club had a great response to this initiative.

The club also took out billboards along the I-95 Corridor from 25 November through 10 December. Interstate 95 is the main Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the U.S., running from Route 1 in Miami, Florida, to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing with New Brunswick, Canada, and is used by millions of people daily.

On 24 November, the club participated in the Space Coast Basket Brigade, which provided 3,346 local families with everything they need to prepare a traditional Thanksgiving meal. Club members volunteered in their orange Zonta Says NO t-shirts, using the opportunity to spread awareness of the importance of ending violence against women.

The club also involved high school students in its efforts. Members of the Melbourne High School Z Club arranged for their school’s electronic billboard to encourage students to wear orange and coordinated a presentation with Sheriff Wayne Ivey and a human trafficking survivor to speak to the students on 10 December.