National Network to End Domestic Violence census of shelters and service by jestevens

Every year, the National Network to End Domestic Violence asks the nation's domestic violence programs in all 50 states to tally the number of people -- women and men -- whom they help in just one 24-hour period.

Last September 15 was the day. Of the 1,920 identified domestic violence programs in the U.S., 1,746 participated in the census -- that's 91 percent. Most of the Kansas DV programs participated, including our local Willow Domestic Violence Center. More information on their results, below.

The snapshot shows -- surprise, surprise -- the numbers, they ain't decreasing.

In those 24 hours, from 12:01 a.m. to 12:59 p.m....

• 37,519 people, mostly women and children, were housed in emergency shelters or transitional housing, either being driven from their homes or no longer feeling safe in their homes.
• 33,129 people, mostly women and children, received individual counseling, legal advice, or participated in childrens' support groups.
• 23,522 people, mostly women and children, called hotlines for help. That's 16 each minute.
• 9,541 people asked for help, but programs didn't have enough resources or funding to assist. This included 5,686 people asking for emergency shelter. What happened to them?

Those numbers tell only part of the story. All children in families with domestic violence are traumatized and can suffer long-term health effects. If not physical, emotional or sexual abuse at the hands of the batterer, they suffer trauma when witnessing their mothers being abused, when losing a parent through separation, when a family member goes to jail, or when they're physically or emotionally neglected. Family puppies, dogs, kittens and cats also suffer. Ever wonder how many pets end up killed, injured or dropped off at animal shelters because a family is violently unraveling?

There were some hopeful numbers in those 24 hours:

• 30,134 people participated in community-oriented domestic violence workshops to learn more about how to recognize and prevent family violence.
• As included in the graphic below, 391 people started new jobs, with the help of the staff at the domestic violence centers.
• Although 2,007 jobs were eliminated because programs lost funding, 1,384 jobs were added or continued, thanks to stimulus funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
  

A mix of tragic and hopeful in the national DV census by jestevens

KANSAS AND DOUGLAS COUNTY

During the 24 hours of Sept. 15, 2010 in Kansas, 1,055 people were provided emergency shelter or non-shelter services, and 436 people called hotlines. That's more than 18 calls each hour. And, sad to say, there were 191 people -- mostly women -- who weren't helped, because the programs didn't have enough resources to assist them; 78 were victims looking for emergency shelter or transitional housing.

All the numbers increased from 2009, when, during the 24 hours of Sept. 15, 918 people were provided shelter or non-shelter services, staff fielded 281 hotline calls, and there were 94 people turned away.

Locally, the Willow Domestic Violence Center serves all of Douglas, Franklin and Jefferson counties. During the 24 hours of September 15 they provided:

• shelter for 10 women and 13 children,
• non-shelter services for 21 women and 5 children,
• and they fielded 37 hotline calls.

That's just one day. The beat(ing) goes on, day after day. In 2010, Willow provided 1,749 non-shelter services, and sheltered 266 women and children for one or more nights. They also measure this in shelter units -- one unit is one person for one night. In 2010, they provided 7,638 shelter units. In 2009, that number was 5,505.

Willow doesn't serve just women and children who are victims of family violence; they serve men victims also. "We provide court advocacy, peer counseling, and hot line services to all survivors of domestic violence," says Audra Fullerton, Willow's outreach coordinator. "But we can only provide shelter to women and children. If men need shelter, or if someone is not comfortable with group living, we refer them to another organization."

So, why ARE things getting worse in the three-county area? And what is the community doing about it?

Answers to those questions in another post, coming soon.