REHAB PROJECTS

Safe Housing for Victims of Domestic Violence

HIF was approached by the Support Network for Battered Women to make some repairs and improvements at its shelter for victims of domestic violence. This is a confidential, emergency shelter consisting of four units. Three are used for housing and one for office space and counseling. Up to 24 victims of domestic violence live within the three units at any given time. Most of the women who go to the shelter arrive with nothing but their children and the clothing on their backs. Often they are in fear for their lives.

As with all of our rehab projects, we undertook this project based upon our conviction that every one of us is entitled to a safe and habitable place to live. One should not be sacrificed for the other. SNBW focuses first and foremost on safety. They work very hard at keeping the location of this program confidential and protecting the residents. But the shelter must be more than a place where they hide. It must also be a place where they can heal and grow. HIF’s role was to help SNBW create an environment that facilitates both healing and growth. Dirt yards, broken down furniture and unreliable plumbing and electricity are not conducive to the desired outcomes – healing, growth, and eventually, self-sufficiency.