GIVE | CARE | SHARE: SAFEHOUSE

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SafeHouseBy Kaitlan McLaughlin Urban Ministries SafeHouse not only helps those affected by domestic violence, but also serves as a resource towards the betterment of those who have nowhere else to turn. Since its inception, SafeHouse has helped countless individuals overcome hardships and start anew. Program Director, Megan Setter explains, “Clarksville Area Urban Ministries started in 1984 to help people experiencing food and housing insecurities in our local community. The ministry saw a need to help individuals facing domestic violence and formed SafeHouse in 1991. SafeHouse is the only domestic violence residential program in our local community.” “I started working at the safe house because I wanted to help survivors of domestic violence find a pathway to freedom. When leaving an abuser, survivors face many obstacles like finding affordable housing, securing stable employment, as well as the hurdle of finding affordable childcare. I want to be able to help break these barriers for our survivors,” Residential Case Manager Alicia Sims stated. Shelter Coordinator Amber Howard adds, “I was ready to find a way to give back to our community and was so excited to learn that Clarksville had this resource. There are so many stigmas that surround domestic violence and I love that we can help break those stigmas through our line of work. One of my favorite parts about working in this field is getting to see the community come together to see a common issue and everyone banning together to solve it.” With the mission of providing crisis intervention, as well as shelter services, to men, women, and children that have been subjected to domestic violence, SafeHouse strives to not only help victims survive, but heal as well. “Our vision is to create a community where anyone experiencing domestic violence has access to the resources they need to break free,” Setter explains. SafeHouse is more than just your standard domestic violence program. They provide a wide array of services to effectively ensure that those affected by domestic violence have ample resources to restore their life. Howard explains, “We offer a 24-hour crisis hotline, a residential and non-residential program, child advocacy, court advocacy, financial aid, case management, and support groups.” cases. With SafeHouse’s resources dwindling rapidly, they kindly ask for your help. Whether you donate items on their wishlist, or volunteer, any assistance is welcome. “We are in the process of renovating a property to become our new facility for residential and non-residential operations. As Clarksville has rapidly developed and increased in population, unfortunately domestic violence and our requests for services have increased alongside it. We have to routinely turn away an average of 30 survivors and their minor children monthly from entering our programs because we don’t have beds available or we have a very limited number of staff. It is the worst feeling in the world to have to answer a call on our crisis hotline for someone that has finally worked up the courage to flee from their abuser and know that you have to refer them to another program because you don’t have a bed available. We have taken long term sustainable steps over the last year to expand our program and we need our community’s support as we move forward. We are kicking off a capital campaign, “Fearless”, in November to help raise funds for the renovation of our new SafeHouse facility which will triple the amount of beds we have available to house our clients and their children and increase the number of staff we have available to help,” Setter tells VIP. “We are constantly in need of bed sheets, blankets, bus passes, gift cards (grocery, gas, etc.) and items that clients can use once they transition into their new home,” Howard adds. Domestic violence is a serious offense that shouldn’t be taken lightly. To this day, there are still many misconceptions as to what domestic violence truly is, and what steps can be taken to either prevent it, or overcome it after the fact. “When people think of domestic violence they associate it with being physical, but it can be verbal, emotional, financial, or any other tactic used to maintain power. Even if domestic violence is not happening to you or around you, it still affects you because it affects society. Each of us has the power to help stop domestic violence,” Sims explains. If you, or anyone you know, suffers from domestic violence feel free to reach out to SafeHouse at any time. They can be reached by their 24-hour Crisis Hotline at (931) 552-6900 or by their administrative number at (931) 648-9100 from 8am to 4pm.

As Clarksville continues to grow, sadly so does the number of domestic violence Check out their Wishlist!