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Washington City proclaims October Domestic Violence Awareness Month; local shelter leaders outline service gaps
Summary
Washington City Council read a proclamation recognizing October as Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Representatives from the Dove Center described increased demand for shelter services, gave usage statistics and said the organization has had to turn away people seeking refuge.
Washington City Mayor and the Washington City Council on Sept. 24 proclaimed October as Domestic Violence Awareness Month and heard from representatives of the Dove Center, the local nonprofit that runs services and a shelter for people fleeing intimate-partner violence.
The proclamation, read by the mayor, urged residents to use October to learn how to “break the silence and end domestic violence” in the community. The council hosted three Dove Center representatives — Mary Lloyd Barth and Sarah Gallo (board members) and Donna Hartberg (staff) — who described service demand and partnerships with local law enforcement.
The Dove Center’s Donna Hartberg told the council, “we’re just putting together our annual report, and I thought it was staggering that over 35,000 units of services… have been provided in this last year,” and that the shelter provided “over 12,500 nights of bed” for people fleeing abuse. Hartberg said the organization sometimes must refer people to other communities because shelter capacity is exceeded.
Mary Lloyd Barth, identified as a Dove Center board member, said long-term prevention work has not reduced the overall rates of intimate-partner violence: “the statistics aren’t changing,” she said, and she praised the Omaha-area law enforcement use of a lethality assessment tool. Chief of Police Jason Williams, representing Washington City Police Department, thanked the Dove Center for the partnership and said the resources help officers investigate sensitive cases and “move that along.”
Councilman Caspersen, who serves on the Dove Center board, urged residents to donate and support the organization; he said the center was unable to serve about 45 people last year and already had 110 people it could not place so far this year. Caspersen recommended community financial support to increase capacity.
Why it matters: Council recognition raises public awareness of domestic violence and publicly highlights capacity limits at a local victim services provider. The council did not take any funding action at the Sept. 24 meeting; speakers asked the community and potential donors to consider contributions to increase shelter capacity.
The city and the Dove Center said they will continue the partnership. The proclamation is intended as an awareness-raising step; council members and Dove Center staff emphasized that longer-term funding and shelter expansion would be needed to reduce the number of people turned away.
