PRINTLonger shelter stays for domestic violence victims
Employment and housing deficits have led to increases in the length of time clients temporarily live at the True North and the Rape & Abuse Crisis Service shelters.
Stefanie Kienstra
December 1, 2011 | 12:00 a.m. CST
For four decades, local emergency centers have opened their doors to victims of domestic violence. But with a decline in the economy over the last few years, victims have been staying at shelters longer than ever. Struggling to find stable jobs and housing for clients, women’s shelters in Columbia and Jefferson City now confront slower turnarounds and the longest average bed stays to date.
Due to bleak economic outlook, the average bed stay at True North shelter is currently 45 days long, which is nearly double the 2010 average of 25 days. The Rape & Abuse Crisis Service shelter in Jefferson City has noticed an almost identical increase at its facility. There, the average bed stay has shifted from about two months to three to six months in some cases.
True North of Columbia
875-1370
This local shelter provides counseling, support groups, community outreach and awareness, educational programs and advocacy.
Donations can be sent to:
True North
P.O. Box 1367
Columbia, MO 65205
Jefferson City Rape & Abuse Crisis Service
634-4911
The service offers shelter, court advocacy, counseling, 24-hour hotline, crisis intervention, support groups and case management to victims of domestic and sexual abuse.
Donations can be sent to:
RACS, Executive Director
P.O. Box 416
Jefferson City, MO 65102
“If a client plans to leave a bad situation permanently to start a new life, it can take months to regroup,” says True North shelter Director Barbara Hodges. “That’s where we’re seeing the extended time that an individual will stay in residence. It’s taking longer to find housing and a job. The market is just not offering a lot.”
The search for jobs and housing has created anxiety for clients who often need multiple jobs. “Most of our clients have little training or schooling, so they have to go to almost a minimum wage job, which means they have to work two jobs,” Mary, a Rape & Abuse Crisis Service shelter director, says “When you’re a single woman with kids, that’s a difficult situation.”
Jim Clardy, executive director of the Rape & Abuse Crisis Service shelter, says that this trend has strained the shelter’s housing capabilities. “Our shelter capacity has been at 90 percent for three or four months, and we’ve been over capacity a number of times.”
He attributes some of the increase to the fact that, as of five years ago, Rape & Abuse Crisis Service shelter clients were no longer given top priority for housing availability in the area. Now, housing priority goes to people with children or disabilities. Likewise, the shelter did not receive the federal Emergency Shelter Grant in the last funding period, which was an important source of money in previous years. Still, Clardy thinks that economic turmoil contributes to this statewide trend.
“I like to think that the increased traffic is partly because of our increased advocacy,” Clardy says. “Recent additions to our staff are working in surrounding counties to increase awareness, but that doesn’t account for the new records we’re seeing now.”
Despite new challenges, both shelters are doing everything possible to continue providing services. “We’ve had to refer some clients to other shelters, but that’s been an unusual event,” Clardy says. “We have a 36-bed shelter that can take up to 40, but we’ve housed up to 44 in the last few months.”
Mary says it’s the shelter managers who have been impacted by the increase in numbers the most; those employees are in the shelters around the clock and do the daily services. “Getting personal care items or clothing or food for ten people - it’s not a big deal,” she says. “But for 30 or 40 people, it’s much more time consuming.”
Overcrowding has not been a problem for True North. The shelter has been able to handle the influx thus far. In the event that True North approaches maximum capacity, the shelter temporarily limits new clientele to Boone County residents. Although Hodges says this happens only a few times annually, the shelter is currently only accepting Boone County residents.
“I don’t think we’ve had to make any adjustments,” Hodges says. “We just continue doing what we have been doing to try to assist women as best we can to get job interviews and find childcare and housing. All the pieces that were previously in place are still in place. It’s just taking longer.”
Do you want to get perfect Christmas gift ?
CA POLO EDHARDY GUCCI T-SHIRT $15;
TRUE RELIGION EVISU G-STAR COOGI JEAN $36;
http://w w w . a l i b a b i z . c o m
wholesale adidas cheap
GUCCI COACH shoes DG shoes $33
coach chanel gucci LV handbags $30;
http://www.alibabiz.com
nike wholesale
wholesale jordan sneakers
cheap wholesale
nike air max
http://w w w . a l i b a b i z . c o m
Posted by linhaifeng linhaifeng on Dec 1, 2011 at 5:47 p.m. (Report Comment)