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Fall 2011 Newsletter
From the Executive Director
Three months into our fiscal year, and staff and volunteers have already assisted 190 new crime victims and provided more than 560 unique services to those victims. Some may have requested something as simple as where to find free legal assistance. Others may have been provided with a safe place to stay for the night and something to eat, as they escaped a violent relationship. Many of our victims receive the knowledgeable, caring support of a skilled victim advocate as they sit in a court room day after day, across the room from their assailant. Please join me in thanking every intern, volunteer and staff member for the assistance they provide to victims, during the day or in the middle of the night, in the office, the court room, the emergency department, or the sexual assault crisis center.
The chart above illustrates some of the major crime types we have responded to during the past fiscal year, ending June, 2011. During that time we assisted 852 new victims and provided 3,562 unique services such as crisis counseling, assistance with victim’s compensation, and criminal justice advocacy. While crime overall in Arizona is down, we continue to see an increase in certain crime types in our region including cases of child abuse. Our website is under construction. Design students at Northern Arizona University and our Director of Development and Outreach, Holly Hulen, are revamping the site for a fresh look and to provide more in-depth information for clients and the general public. The draft design looks fabulous and should be launched in the spring. These are the kinds of collaborative partnerships we rely on to offset operating costs for our small agency. And the students gain real work experience that will be invaluable in their job searches following graduation.
In other news, look for our Annual Report this winter. The Report will provide more detail about the agency’s many accomplishments for the year and statistics related to the victims serviced. The Report will be available on-line and in print.
The Holiday Fundraising Letter will be mailed in November. We invite you to support your community victim services agency at this special time of year, and to remember those who have been the victims of violent crimes. Proceeds from the Holiday Letter are used for operating expenses for the agency and for special programs such as the Domestic Violence Support Group and the Pet’s Too! Program.
Please contact us for assistance if you are the victim of a crime or if you would like to provide support to further our mission. We are always recruiting volunteers and are always in need of donations of used cell phones, gift cards for clients, and monetary donations. We are a community based agency and we rely on the support of the community to provide quality victim services now and in the future.
Kris Stark,
Executive Director
Child Maltreatment Public Awareness Campaign
In the last quarter, VWS’s Child Maltreatment Public Awareness Campaign has participated in 17 outreach events reaching the communities of Flagstaff, Fredonia, Havasupi, Page, and Tuba City. Find out more about this program on our website vwscoconino.org.
Executive Board
- Kathi Shinham, President
- Interim Deputy Chief, Ken Koch, Vice President
- Cindy Cox, Secretary
- Chad McCutchen, Treasurer
- Kris Stark, Executive Director
Board Members
- Paul Bustamante
- Diane Chung
- Commander Rex Gilliland
- Marlene DeRosa
- Dave Rozema
- Linda Robyn
- Paula Smith
Volunteers
- Christina Allen
- Amailia Caldwell
- Shannon Cassidy
- Florina Daniels
- Rebecca Dickerson
- Saskia Dulyea
- John Fall
- Ollie Groby
- Paul Hernandez
- Lindsey Huber
- Sharilyn Hunter
- Trevor Johnson
- Michael Kovac
- Alyssa Lopez
- Grace Marks
- Elizabeth Martin
- Erica McCullough
- Carol McFadden
- Anne Medill
- Jamie Miller
- Miranda Minasian
- Shelma Osorio
- Mellisa Rhodes
- Amber Shipley
- Holly Sholtz
- Melissa Skeet
- David Sonny
- Kendall Spencer
- Sarah Targos
- Athena Thomas
- Sarah Targos
- Tia Truss
- Kelly Wells
- Michael Wheelis
- Roxanne Zaad
V-DAY 2012
V-DAY 2012 is February 25th! VWS is calling all female community members over the age of 18 to audition for the V-DAY community performance and be part of the effort to stop violence against women and children! V-DAY 2012 is co-directed by Danielle Knight and Mickey Mercer. Anyone interested in becoming involved, on or off stage, please contact Lindsey Goss at lgoss@coconino.az.gov or call (928) 679-7784.
This community performance is a collaborative effort between Victim Witness Services for Coconino County, Northern Arizona Center Against Sexual Assault and Theatrikos Theatre Company and is supported by BBB Revenues from the City of Flagstaff and Flagstaff Cultural Partners.
OCTOBER IS DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AWARENESS MONTH
October is nationally recognized as Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Although October has come and gone, VWS was active during the month of October, as every month, in providing domestic violence awareness advocacy, assistance, and education. Over 40 percent of VWS’s case load is victims who have experienced domestic violence. Although crime in Flagstaff has reduced, domestic violence crimes have increased. According to the Coconino County Domestic Violence Fatality Review Team Annual Report, Coconino County experienced eleven domestic violence homicides between 2000 and 2009. Two of the 2009 DV homicides were murder-suicides. In 2010, five domestic violence related deaths occurred in Coconino County. (Source: Coconino County Domestic Violence Fatality Review Team Annual Report). In the uncompleted 2011 calendar year, Coconino County has again seen an increase with eight DV related homicides. This increase in DV fatalities is astronomical.
SO, what does Victim Witness Services do in the effort to stop violence against women?Special projects during the month of October included collaborating with the Northern Arizona University’s Project Give Program to increase the visibility of VWS’s Call-to-Protect Phone Program; a program that recycles donated cell phones. Donated working phones become part of the “Call to Protect” program and are phones that are provided to domestic violence victims and used as part of their safety plan. Broken phones are recycled with an outside company and proceeds support the Pets Too! Program. Please don’t forget when you upgrade your phone, broken or not, that it can be put to good use through VWS! You should be able to spot our blue phone donation boxes, constructed by the NAU’s Criminal Justice Club and Honor Society, throughout campus and the community.
Education and outreach is an ongoing component of VWS and the fight to stop violence against women. VWS strives to address the victimization of women throughout their lifespan---domestic violence impacts females in their youth, teens, and senior years. VWS, in collaboration with the Coconino Coalition for Children and Youth, sponsored a training titled “In Their Shoes”. This training was designed for adults such as teachers, counselors, youth group leaders, law enforcement, and parents. This scenario based training illustrates the experiences of real teens that include sexting, pregnancy, homophobia and stalking. VWS participated in Northern Arizona University’s Sex Fest event, helping promote domestic violence awareness, healthy relationship resources and information on sexual consent.
Through funds from UniSource VWS was able to pilot a domestic violence support group program. A support group will be continued through a Verizon Hope Grant, and a strong collaboration with Northern Arizona University.
ONGOING, VWS provides twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week on-scene crisis response. VWS responds on-scene each year to an estimated 80 women who have experienced domestic violence. The Crisis Response team provides crisis management, information on safety planning and shelter, and other referrals. VWS Advocates provide on-going judicial advocacy; helping on average 350 new domestic violence victims each year through the court system, assisting with orders of protection, and providing on-going judicial case management.
WHAT ELSE? Victim Witness Services currently participates as a member of the Coconino County Coordinated Response Team (CCRT) which is a multi-disciplinary team charged with improving the coordinated response to domestic violence and sexual assault with the ultimate goal of reducing domestic violence and sexual assault through prevention, intervention and supportive services.
VWS is also actively participating in state and local resources such as the Family Advocacy Council for Northern Arizona, Criminal Justice Coordinating Council, Sexual Assault Response Team and the Arizona Coalition for Victim Services. All work together on broader issues to impact violence against women.
VWS is collaborating with cutting edge academic research projects such as the “Impact of Intimate Partner Violence” project with co-investigators Kathleen Ferraro and Mike Costelloe, the NAU Fatality Review Safety Audit (FRSA) project lead by nationally renowned domestic violence expert, Dr. Neil Websdale, and the Coconino County Domestic Violence Fatality Review Team.
VWS is active and passionate in the effort to stop violence against women and does so by being involved on many fronts. VWS is very aware that it takes the participation of the entire community to work towards building the social intolerance of domestic violence; we take this opportunity to thank all our collaborative partners.
Thank you!
FUNDING UPDATE:
As many non-profit and governmental agencies around the nation and state have experienced financial crisis, our non-profit has not been immune to budget cuts. For the first time, VWS experienced a $20,000 funding cut from our largest grant funder. Fortunately, neither services nor staff has been cut. VWS thanks our partners in recent funding support that have allowed us to continue to provide quality services:
- The 12th Annual Taste of Flagstaff raised over $28,000 that will support direct victim services.
- Flagstaff Community Foundation awarded $20,400 to support the Crisis Response Team.
- The Arizona Community Foundation awarded $2,256 to replace computer equipment.
- The Flagstaff Cultural Partners awarded $2,600 to support V-Day 2012.
- Verizon Hope Grant: $2,000 to assist Domestic Violence support groups.
VWS continues to seek alternative funding sources to not only maintain sustainability but to help meet the identified community challenges. VWS is exploring other funding opportunities such as planned giving strategies and additional fund raising/outreach events. We’ll keep you posted on how you might be able to support our efforts!
“ I don’t know what your destiny will be, but the one thing I know; the only ones among you who will be really happy are those who have sought and found how to serve.”
~Albert Schweitzer
My Best Friend
I bought you for fashion;
I bought you to keep me warm from the wind and safe from the chill
But you have brought me more than that,
My best friend
I loved him, you know it’s true
I loved him through and through till the day end and we began with a new
And he loved me with all his heart and would never let go, never let go of me for I was his till the end
But, my best friend
You knew the truth
You covered my body, you covered my bruise.Never letting the world see what he could do. You kept my secret. Through your every thread, through your every stitch you knew the truth, covered the truth, kept the truth within
My best friend
You hold within so many memories, memories of love, memories of misuse, memories of regret, yet,
You still kept my secrets part of you, within you
My best friend
I never thought you; you would cover me from the world, from myself, from him
Yet, I received no advice, no love, no safety from you my friend; you could not save me from him protect me from him
My best friend
You concealed so that no one else could see and never let the world know, know what you knew, what you kept inside, inside your woven threads
My best friend
You felt his hands on me and still you kept me in your embrace as he ripped at you and tore at your fabric that kept my secrets hidden, hidden away from everyone but him. You knew I was done, you knew I could not take it any longer. You could feel the change, the strength as my heart beat faster, you knew your time was coming to an end but still you covered and kept me within, you held on to my body my arms were trapped in your embrace and you choked my neck until I couldn’t take it any longer, until I couldn’t breath any longer You knew that your time as my best friend would be coming to an end. I do not need you anymore my best friend, for I have found a new love, one who keeps me warm and safe and holds me in his embrace. My skin does not need to hide from the world anymore, for it is free of pain and hurt and I won’t need you anymore
My best friend
~Athena Thomas
Mark Your Calendar for 2012!
Monday, July 16th, 2012 High Country Conference Center
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE VICTIM ADVOCATE DEBORAH FRESQUEZ
by Trevor Johnson
Victims of domestic violence face unique realities in the world of victimization. A domestically violent relationship isolates the victim, oftentimes stemming from an unhealthy need for control on the part of the abuser. Victims will often be prevented from interacting with friends or family members by their partner. Victims will lose control of their finances.
Victims are often unaware of the resources that are available to them. Attempting to leave their partner, or even simply reaching out for help, can itself aggravate the violence that is occurring, and put them in significant danger. Friends and family, in many instances, do not understand this potential for violence to their loved one, and as a result are hindered in helping in a safe and effective way.
Often overlooked is the role the economy can play in domestic violence. Victims are often financially dependent on their abuser, trapping them in situations they would be able to leave otherwise; as jobs have been lost, more individuals find themselves in this financially dependent position. Extended families are forced to move in with each other as wages and jobs are lost, creating additional conflict and potential for abuse. Organizations that provide resources to victims have received cuts in funding, as state and federal government have reduced budgets. As a result there are now fewer people, and fewer resources, available for victims of domestic violence in our society.
Debbie Fresquez, as an advocate here at VWS, works to address these realities. Debbie works with victims of domestic violence and child abuse. She is one of our most experienced advocates, having over 7 years of experience working with VWS for Coconino County. Debbie first became involved with Victim Witness as a Coconino County Deputy Sheriff. In her law enforcement position, she worked to bring justice to victims of crime. As an investigator of crimes against victims, she was exposed to the challenges victims face in receiving justice and compensation in our complex criminal justice system. Her empathy and passion for victim’s rights led her to volunteer with VWS, which in turn brought her to join the VWS staff as a Victim Advocate.
In addition to her role as an advocate, Debbie serves on the Fatality Review Board of Flagstaff, which reviews fatalities caused by DV, analyzes the cases and provides system recommendations. She oversees the Pets Too! program, which provides shelter for the pets of victims who are seeking to leave a domestic violence relationship. She assists with the Domestic Violence Impact Panel, a panel that perpetrators of DV are required to attend. She also belongs to the Coconino County Crisis Response Team for Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault, a program that coordinates community efforts to reduce domestic violence.
When asked about “her”, Deborah states: “Part of who I am and what makes me who I am is my family. This photo is of the Fresquez women.”
CRISIS RESPONSE VOLUNTEERS
Victim Witness Services’ Crisis Response Program is an essential community service, and volunteers are crucial to our organization. VWS volunteers do pick a shift, but they can’t conveniently plan when they will actually be “serving the community”. Typically, the phone rings in the early morning hours of one or two o’clock a.m. Within twenty minutes, VWS volunteers are on-scene at a victim’s home, the emergency room, or the police department providing resources and support to help survivors recover from the trauma of crime.
The ability to sit with a young girl who has been raped only minutes after the incident has happened, to discuss a safety plan with a woman who is in the hospital because her husband has beaten her severely, or to deliver to a parent the forever life changing message that their child has passed away----these tasks require more than skill and training, it demands a personal commitment to serve and make a difference.
The service provided on-scene helps reduce the trauma and stabilizes a victim's current situation. VWS services not only assists victims and their families, they also benefit Flagstaff law enforcement and medical personnel. By providing immediate on-site crisis intervention and management, social service assistance, and safety plan- ning, medical and law enforcement to address immediate crime related and medical demands.
VWS has been working diligently towards strengthening the volunteer program and we are now reaping the fruits of our efforts. Volunteers gave 2,400 hours of service this past quarter and responded to 52 crisis calls. It is amazing to see the entire volunteer schedule filled each day for the entire month of November. Thank you! Your service is important to VWS, our partners, and the community!
If you or someone you know is interested in volunteering, our next VWS Volunteer training is scheduled:
- Friday, November 18, 2011, 5:30 pm-8:30 pm
- Saturday, November 19, 2011, 8:00 am-5:00 pm
- Sunday, November 20, 2011, 9:00 am-4:00 pm
Please contact Lindsey Goss at lgoss@coconino.az.gov for more information.
Happy Holidays!
