Month calls attention to issue
October marks the 29th annual Domestic Violence Awareness Month observance.
But Domestic Violence Services of Southwestern Pennsylvania deals with domestic violence in Washington, Greene and Fayette counties every day.
“Our message is we can end domestic violence; we can prevent it,” said Alexandra Brooks, prevention education coordinator at DVS. Despite the fact that agencies like DVS have worked to halt domestic violence, the numbers are startling.
According to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, one woman is fatally shot by a spouse, ex-spouse or dating partner every 14 hours.
One in three women and one in four men have been physically abused by an intimate partner, and intimate partner violence accounts for 15 percent of all violent crime.
DVS operates a 15-bed facility in Washington that is “typically pretty full all year round,” said Brooks, and a 13-bed shelter in Fayette County.
The death of Tierne Ewing, who was murdered by her husband on Aug. 30 after enduring years of abuse, has underscored the importance of combating domestic violence.
In the one-month period from Aug. 30 to Sept. 30, the DVS Washington County hotline received 55 calls, and 64 protection from abuse orders were filed.
In the 2015-16 fiscal year, which ended on June 30, 979 PFA orders were filed, with 475 of those being filed in Washington County, and the domestic violence hotline received a total of 1,159 calls. Of those, 414 were made to the Washington County hotline.
Brooks said the mission during Domestic Violence Awareness Month is twofold: to let people know the agency exists and what services it offers to victims of domestic violence; and to let the community know what they can do to help DVS in its efforts to end domestic violence.
“It’s important just to get information out to people, and for them to know that (DVS) is here, and that you can receive services without entering a shelter,” said Brooks.
DVS offers free services to domestic violence victims, including comprehensive safety planning, transitional housing, therapy services for adults and children, legal advocacy, and food and clothing. DVS also offers speakers who provide educational presentations, including “Healthy Relationships, “Teen Dating Violence Prevention” and “Coaching Boys into Men,” to nearly 15,000 children and adults in the tri-county area.
Brooks said the youth-related programs are important because for both abusers and victims, the problem often starts in teen years and the key to stemming domestic violence is teaching youth at younger ages about healthy relationships.
She pointed out that Tierne Ewing, who was 48 when she died, began dating her husband in eighth grade.
“We want people to know that it’s OK to talk about domestic violence, that violence in a relationship is not acceptable, and that there are steps the community can take to help end domestic violence,” said Brooks. “We really can end it.”
DVS hotlines are available to victims of domestic violence and friends or family of victims 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. In Washington County, call 1-800-791-4000 or 724-223-9190; in Greene County, call 724-832-2463; in Fayette County, call 724-439-9500.