Greene commissioners issue several proclamations
WAYNESBURG — Greene County Commissioners made several proclamations during their regular meeting on Thursday.
Commissioners proclaimed October Domestic Violence Awareness Month. According to information provided by Domestic Violence Services of Southwestern Pennsylvania, the Greene, Fayette and Washington offices last year responded to more than 2,100 domestic violence-related hotline calls; provided services to more than 2,500 new victims, children and significant others; and offered more than 15,000 hours of counseling to all victims, children and significant others.
“We want to stop the cycle of domestic violence,” said Cheryl McCready, Greene County office coordinator for Domestic Violence Services of Southwestern Pennsylvania.
“It’s not OK to hurt someone you love, and victims should know that they have support and that help is available. No one should be afraid to be in their own home.”
McCready presented the commissioners with business cards containing hotline numbers for the three counties, purple bracelets and purple ribbons, symbols of domestic violence awareness.
Commissioners also proclaimed the week of Oct. 14-20 Health Care Quality Week. The proclamation recognizes that health-care professionals across Pennsylvania have demonstrated a commitment to the goals of delivering high-quality, cost-effective and safe health care to all people.
Locally, the commissioners recognized Southwest Regional Medical Center in Waynesburg.
“We are committed to providing quality health care to all citizens in Greene County,” said Marie Gillispie, a registered nurse and quality coordinator at the hospital.
Accepting the proclamation with Gillispie was Fran Morgan, the hospital’s quality coordinator.
Commissioners also proclaimed October Dignity and Respect Month as part of a nationwide campaign launched through the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.
The campaign promotes a genuine appreciation and acceptance of all people, as well as an atmosphere of mutual respect and inclusion in the workplace, schools and the community.
In other business, the commissioners approved pass-through agreements for a federal grant that will provide funding for the county’s CARE Center and for domestic violence programs in 2013.
Through the STOP Violence Against Women Formula Grant Program, the CARE Center will receive $21,013 that will be used for sexual assault counseling, while $30,237 will be dispersed between the local women’s center and various county initiatives aimed toward domestic violence awareness, as well as for legal aid for domestic violence victims.
County Chief Clerk Jeff Marshall said the STOP grant is a competitive funding stream and the county has been awarded various STOP grants in the past. The commissioners will act as the pass-through agent for this funding stream.
The most recent STOP grant application by the county was approved last month.
The county received $125,000 in grant money, of which the funding for the CARE Center and domestic violence initiatives will be allocated.
Greene County has received the STOP grant every year since 1997 and has used the funds to create community initiatives, including outreach and education, arrest and prosecute perpetrators and provide needed counseling to women age 14 and older.
The county also has a STOP grant coordinating team, which includes staff from the county’s 911 center, human services and probation programs and the district attorney’s, magisterial district judges’ and sheriff’s offices.
Additionally, the team includes representatives from the women’s centers in Greene and Washington counties; Cumberland Township, state police and Waynesburg police; Southwest Regional Medical Center; Southwestern Pennsylvania Human Services CARE Center; and Southwestern Pennsylvania Legal Services.
The STOP grant is administered by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office on Violence Against Women and awarded in the state through the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency.
The STOP (Services Training Officers Prosecutors) Violence Against Women Formula Grant Program was authorized under the federal Violence Against Women Act of 1994 and reauthorized and amended in 2000 and 2005, according to the Office on Violence Against Women Web site.
The program promotes advocacy, services and improving the criminal justice system’s response to domestic violence crimes, according to the website.