Wednesday, April 14, 2004

Domestic violence council needs money help quick By JOHN MUNFORD jmunford@TheCitizenNews.com The Fayette County Council on Domestic Violence is running out of money, prompting a plea for help. The agency assisted 465 domestic violence victims in Fayette County last year, including 104 who obtained emergency protective orders, according to the agency’s year-end report for 2003. The agency’s case load has increased by 29 percent since 1999, but monetary donations have dropped off considerably in recent months, touching off a plea for immediate assistance. “We have never been in this bad a shape before,” said Bonnie Campbell, executive director of the council. “We are totally out of money.” The council is a separate non-profit agency and is not fully funded by any government agency, Campbell noted. In recent months, several fund-raisers fell flat of expectations, including the annual fashion show and auction which is the council’s largest fund-raiser, she said. “A lot of business donations are down and personal donations are down,” Campbell said, adding that donations from churches are down also. The largest source of income for the council is $36,000 every year provided by the Fayette Thrift Shop, Campbell said. “Without them, we would have had to shut our doors a long time ago,” Campbell said. “They have been very faithful every year with that.” The agency receives $10,000 a year from the Fayette County Board of Commissioners and until recently has received $6,000 to $6,500 a year from the Peachtree City City Council. But even Peachtree City has had to cut back its support this year, although the city council will discuss the amount at an upcoming meeting, Campbell said. In addition to legal advocacy, the council also offers crisis counseling with a 24-hour emergency number, a weekly support group with free child care and transitional housing for victims who leave their abusers so they can get back on their feet financially. The transitional housing facility helped nine victims and their 15 children last year, Campbell noted. “That way they are safe from abuse and we can help them to get out on their own so they can be self-sufficient and not go back to an abusive situation,” Campbell said. Victims are referred to the council from local police departments and the court system, Campbell said. The council also offers dating violence classes that are taught each year at all Fayette County High Schools, reaching 1,675 students last year. “We talk to the kids about healthy relationships and the red flags to look out for,” Campbell said, adding that estimates are abuse takes place in 1 in every 5 teenage dating relationships. The council also offers a speakers bureau to give talks about domestic violence, which reached almost 1,000 people last year, and a food pantry for victims to use. The agency is staffed by one full-time employee and one part-timer, a staffing level that hasn’t risen in years, during which the office’s workload has almost doubled. Because the council is a non-profit agency, donations are tax-deductible. Anyone wishing to make donations may mail checks made out to FCCDV at P.O. Box 854, Fayetteville, Ga. 30215. Donations can also be dropped off in person at the council’s office at 165D Bradford Square, which is located off Grady Avenue. The council is also seeking donations of unused cellphones which are recycled with a private company that pays between $1 and $20 for each phone sent in, depending on how new the phone is, Campbell said.