By Heidi Becker
Special to The Citizen

For most of us, home is a place where we can relax, be ourselves, share family time and escape from the madness of the world. But not for everyone.

For many, who are victims of domestic violence, home is a dangerous place, where walking on eggshells is required and life is unpredictable at best. Domestic violence is the only crime where the victim is forced to leave home to find safety. Many of these victims, over 500 each year, end up on the door step of Promise Place, the Fayette County Council on Domestic Violence which also serves Pike, Upson and Spaulding counties. Fayette County has more domestic abuse cases than all the other counties in the Griffin Judicial District combined.

Promise Place was established in 1989 to assist the growing number of domestic abuse victims in Fayette County. It is a nonprofit 501c-3 organization which relies predominately on community support, donations and the hard work of over 30 volunteers. What started out as a grassroots organization has grown tremendously in services offered as the county continues to grow and as awareness of the crime spreads.

Despite the increase in clients, Promise Place has continued to operate with a lean staff consisting of an executive director, an office manager and one part-time victim's advocate. Recently, the State of Georgia approached Promise Place because a need was identified for services in other counties and provided a seed grant for a part time Victim's Advocate to serve Pike, Upson and Spaulding counties.

All of the services offered are free and include crisis intervention, 24-hour emergency hotline, legal advocacy, a weekly support group with free child care, a food and household goods pantry, and a Christmas program which enables families to pick out presents for their children out of the hundreds donated each holiday season. Over 100 emergency protective orders, a legal remedy that helps afford women and their children the opportunity of continued life without the constant threat of assault, are filed each year at no cost to the victim.

Because children suffer emotionally as a result of violence in the home, and are 74 percent more likely to commit crimes when they get older, therapeutic support groups and individual counseling for children is on the horizon thanks to a grant from United Way. According to Executive Director Sonja Strickland, "Children don't have to be the ones abused or even witness the abuse, they know it is going on in the house, they can feel it. As a result, boys grow up to be abusers and girls grow up to be abused. It is a cycle we are determined to help stop by offering counseling for children."

Promise Place was a leader in the nation by forming a unique and progressive youth education program that is approved by the Fayette County Board of Education. This Teen Dating Violence Prevention Program which reaches over 2000 Fayette County students each year is based on the philosophy that "education equals prevention." Volunteers go into the ninth grade health classes to educate the students on the crime of domestic violence. The belief is that if you can warn the ninth graders of the red flags of an unhealthy or abusive relationship before they actually start dating, the seed will be planted that may someday save their lives. Statistics show that one in every eight high school students has experienced violence, that one in five female high school students report being physically and or sexually abused by a dating partner, and 40 percent of girls age 14 to 17 report knowing someone their age who has been hit or beaten by a boyfriend. This program is supported by money generated from an ongoing used cell phone drive. Boxes are located at the local Starbucks and at churches and businesses throughout the community.

A few years back a home was donated to Promise Place for the purpose of transitional housing for survivors who are out of immediate danger, away from their abuser and are ready to rebuild their lives. This program allows women and their children to live in safe, secure individual apartment homes for up to 18 months while they get on their feet and transition into a self supporting healthy environment. The home can accommodate six families and is kept in good repair by area churches and volunteers like Square Foot Ministries.

Strickland stays extremely busy with the daily phone calls, the increasing case load, and working toward the goal of building an emergency shelter. While it is true that men can be victims, 90 percent of domestic violence victims are women. She noted that over nine women in the Atlanta area were killed in the month of October alone. "The time has come to build an emergency shelter to house the women and children with nowhere to turn when they are in danger. Too many times, we have to call around to other counties to find an opening and more often than not they are full. When we do find a shelter that can accommodate our victim, it is often far away in a county where the woman doesn't know anyone or have a support system. So not only are they removed from their home, they are away from their church, their friends and everything familiar. This makes a scary situation even scarier. We need to raise the initial $200,000 to receive matching funds but fundraising is a challenge in a county with so many good causes to support."

Recently $15,000 was raised at Promise Place's 5K Run/Walk from Domestic Violence. Other fundraisers are in the planning stages including a Black and White Ball and a Rodeo with a country music line up.

When asked what are some immediate needs that the community can help with, Mrs. Strickland had a list: Financial donations for on-going program expenses and toward the emergency shelter fund set up at BB&T Bank, gas gift cards, grocery store gift cards, canned goods and individually packaged snacks and drinks to restock the pantry, volunteers for the cell phone drive, the teen dating violence program and to help with upcoming fundraisers and events.

Promise Place is a vital part of our community, providing invaluable services to the citizens. You can contact Promise Place at 770-460-1604 or the Crisis hotline at 770-486-1673 or by e-mail at PromisePlace@bellsouth.net. Tax-deductible contributions can be mailed to Promise Place, POB 854, Fayetteville, Ga. 30214.

Heidi Becker is a community advocate for women and children and President of Heidi Becker & Associates Public Relations.

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