Oct 5, 2012 By Kyle Edwards, For The Greene County Messenger 4 min read

WAYNESBURG — From July 2011 to June 2012, the Greene County satellite office of Domestic Violence Services of Southwestern Pennsylvania received 390 new service recipients, a number that falls within the norm, according to Cheryl McCready, coordinator for the satellite office.

“We generally have around 25 new clients each month, so it ends up being around 340 each year,” McCready said. “Abuse is all about power and control. Sometimes that control is verbal, sometimes emotional and sometimes it escalates into physical abuse. We actually have two shelters – one in Washington and one in Uniontown. So if a Greene County person needs a safe place to stay, we will make arrangements for them to stay at one of the shelters.”

Also during this time frame, the office received 488 domestic violence-related hotline calls, conducted a total of 670 counseling hours to all service recipients and helped file 122 total protection from abuse orders, McCready said.

“They say that 95 percent of victims of abuse are women. Of the five percent that are men, we know that there are probably a lot more – and the same goes for the women,” she said. “Man or woman, it’s difficult to say that someone you love is abusive, but the men usually find it more difficult, especially if it’s physical abuse.”

Victims of abuse are not the only people the office helps, according to McCready.

“Usually if we have 25 victims of abuse in one month, we probably have four that are abused themselves, or they have a mother or daughter or other loved one that is being abused by their significant others,” she said.

The organization, once called the Washington Women’s Shelter, changed its name to reflect everything the organization has to offer.

“One of the reasons we changed is that we recognized that it’s not just women who are being abused,” she said. “And we offer so many more services than just protection. We also serve Washington, Greene and Fayette counties, so a name change was in order.”

The shelter offers many services, including safe, temporary shelter, a 24-hour hotline, 24-hour transportation and intake, empowerment counseling and support groups; information and referrals, legal advocacy, transitional housing and much more.

“For the empowerment counseling, it’s important to note that it’s not mental health counseling,” McCready said. “The victim has not done anything wrong, but sometimes their self-esteem has been run down, and they become more dependent on their abuser. The empowerment counselor helps them to regain their self-esteem and become more independent.”

Because October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, the Greene County satellite office will once again be holding its Purple Ribbon Campaign. McCready is encouraging individuals and businesses to display purple ribbons to show support for domestic violence awareness.

“We’ll personally have a display called our ‘Empty Place Setting’ in the courthouse, the Bowlby Library, First Federal Savings and Loan and Penn State Cooperative Extension in Waynesburg,” she said. “A lot of the local businesses in town are already putting up displays and signs in their windows. Also, some of the Waynesburg, Carmichaels and Cumberland Township police will put purple ribbons on their cars.”

McCready said that the whole point of this campaign is to let people know that help is available. “It’s important to remind our community of the hidden secrets that many women and their children face daily behind closed doors,” she said. “Many victims come here and say that they didn’t know that there was any help that was available for them. So, if we promote the awareness, maybe we can stop the abuse.”

The exact origin of the Purple Ribbon campaign is unknown, but purple ribbons are used as a symbol of courage, survival, honor and dedication to ending domestic violence. Domestic Violence Awareness Month has evolved from the “Day of Unity” in October 1981 developed by the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Domestic Violence.

In 1987, the first toll-free national hotline was founded along with the first celebration of Domestic Violence Awareness month. Since that time, legislation has been passed each year to reflect on the victims of abuse.

The Greene County satellite office of Domestic Violence Services of Southwestern Pennsylvania is located at 43 North Morgan Street in Waynesburg. For more information, call the office at 724-852-2463.