How one survivor found hope, healing, and the courage to help others.
On any evening at Huanchaco Lounge in Kill Devil Hills, you'll likely find Jharixa Pugh welcoming guests, crafting cocktails inspired by her Peruvian heritage, and creating the kind of space where everyone feels they belong. It's difficult to imagine that just a few years ago, this 30-year-old wasn't sure she would survive.
Jharixa was ten years old when she moved from Lima, Peru, to the Outer Banks. Raised by a strong grandmother and surrounded by resilient women, she grew up in Manteo, attending its schools, forming friendships, and learning the values of kindness and treating everyone with dignity.
The future seemed full of possibility when she graduated from high school. Jharixa dreamed of love and creating a life of her own. Believing she had found the person she would build that life with, she followed her partner across the country to California, convinced they were beginning a future together.
She recalls that what first felt like love and commitment gradually gave way to manipulation, control, and isolation. By the time the relationship ended, it had quietly reshaped her understanding of what was normal. Consequently, she didn't recognize the warning signs when they appeared in the next relationship. And this time, the emotional abuse escalated into full-blown physical violence.
"I became really good at hiding it," she says, “I hid the bruises. I hid the fear. I hid from friends.” Sometimes, she even hid from herself. Jharixa believed the promises and apologies, and she believed that if she loved harder, stayed longer, or somehow became someone different, the violence would stop. But it never did.
As years passed, the abuse escalated until surviving each day became its own exhausting job. She didn't know where to turn. "I didn't even know if Hotline helped people like me," she remembers, “but I called anyway.” “And that changed the course of my life” "The first thing they told me was, 'You're a survivor.'"
For perhaps the first time in years, she felt truly seen. Instead of asking why she stayed, the Hotline advocates asked how they could help. Instead of telling her what she had to do, they explained her options. Instead of seeing someone broken, they saw her strength, even when she couldn't see it herself.
They helped Jharixa navigate the overwhelming legal system, understand her rights, complete paperwork for a Domestic Violence Protective Order, and prepare for court. They walked beside her through every intimidating step, allowing her to move forward at her own pace. She wasn't alone anymore.
When she finally stood before the judge in the Dare County Courtroom, Jharixa found the courage to speak her truth. With Hotline advocates by her side, she obtained a Domestic Violence Protective Order and began reclaiming the life that abuse had nearly taken from her.
"I took my power back that day," she remembers.
Healing didn't happen overnight. There was counseling. There was learning to trust again. There was discovering that love doesn't require fear and that healthy relationships don't demand silence. For the first time in years, she could begin imagining a future instead of simply surviving each day.
Then she met Seth, the man who would become her husband. Together, they opened Huanchaco Lounge, creating the welcoming space she had always envisioned, a place where everyone feels valued, accepted, and safe.
And when anyone quietly confides that they're experiencing abuse, she doesn’t hesitate to tell them "Call Hotline. I know how scary it is. They'll listen. They'll explain your options. They'll never pressure you. They'll walk with you."
Because she knows what it feels like to believe you're alone. But she also knows the extraordinary difference it makes when someone answers the phone.
