On Tuesday, in front of a large crowd of cheering fans, R&B singer Mary J. Blige attended the official ribbon-cutting ceremony for the women’s center she helped create in her hometown of Yonkers, NY.

Blige’s voice was filled with emotion as she spoke at the ceremony, referencing her inspiration for opening the center and how she was molested as a young child.

“When I was 5 years old there was a lot that happened to me ... that I carry... all my life. And when … I was growing up after that, I saw so many women beaten to death, almost to their death, by men."

Later in an interview with CNN, she added:

“I always felt that I wanted to help women, period. As a child I [saw] women really, really suffer terrible, terrible situations, and I vowed as a child to want to do something - anything - that can help them have better self-esteem so that they don't have to be subjected to men that wanted to kill them.”

The Mary J. Blige Center for Women will be a refuge for women and young girls and offer programs on education, life skills, self-empowerment and more. (CNN)

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