Community Involvement

2005 Domestic Violence and Sexual Training Institute

It has been our dream for some time to provide a Domestic and Sexual Violence Training Institute in Marion County. Currently, we go throughout the county and provide 1-8 hour trainings on domestic violence and sexual assault. We are searching for a location base for the Institute, where employers can send their staff for quality trainings. Until we locate a facility, we will continue to provide on-site trainings for groups large and small. See our Training web page for more information on this program.

October 2005 – Oregon Community Foundation provided a grant to transform the building behind our office into a training center facility. The Training Center provides a very comfortable space for trainings and meetings. Community partners also are accessing the Training Center for meetings and Community events. For information on training sessions to be held at the Center, please contact us at info@mvwcs.com.

2004 Hope and Safety Guild

November 2004 – An anonymous foundation has made an incredible offer to MVWCS. Any gift of $250, made between November 1, 2004 and February 1, 2005, will be matched by the foundation. This will enable MVWCS to increase the long-term financial sustainability of our program. The Foundation’s support is not a one-time proposition. The Foundation intends to continue the support for the project beyond this year. As a demonstration of their support for this project, every member of the MVWCS Board of Directors has already agreed to become a member of the Hope and Safety Guild. We hope that you will join them and become one of many community members to provide “hope and safety” to survivors of domestic and sexual violence in our community.

February 2005 – The Hope and Safety Guild finished with 99 members for this year! Our sincere thanks to all the donors and to the wonderful foundation who made this program possible.

August 2005 – Donations are once again being sought for the Hope and Safety Guild. The foundation, which still desires to remain anonymous, has agreed to once again match any donation of $250 to our program. Between now and January 31, 2006, donors can renew or join the Hope and Safety Guild. All the names of donors are placed on a donor wall in our Training Center. This beautiful oak plaque was made possible through a generous community donation.

April 2005 – Nearly 70% of our donors renewed their membership in the Hope and Safety Guild and nearly 50 new members were added. The Hope and Safety Guild has made a tremendous difference to our program and we are truly grateful to the foundation and all our donors.

If you would like to become a Hope and Safety Guild member, please watch for information in the fall of 2006. We would be honored to add your name to those who have created “hope and safety” for victims and survivors of domestic and sexual violence in our community.

2003 – 30th Anniversary Commemoration

Mid-Valley Women’s Crisis Service is commemorating 30 years of providing hope and safety to our community. This year, in honor of our 30th anniversary, Ann Altman, a well known artist in our community, has created beautiful artwork representing our “safe house.” The artwork is available on a number of items that individuals may purchase online or at our office. Please see our 30th Anniversary Ann Altman Commemorative Items
.

September 2002 through now - More Languages

Mid-Valley Women's Crisis Service would like to continue adding educational materials in even more languages and formats. Grant funding and private donations will be sought for this work. If you would like to contribute to the MVWCS Translation Project, please see our donations form. Any gifts to this project are fully tax deductible.

January 2005 – Chinese (Traditional) Trust Management Services provided a grant to have all of our educational materials translated into Traditional Chinese. The materials are now available on our website. In the future, we hope to have funding to translate our materials into the Simplified version of Chinese.

September 2002 - Braille

Whithin the next year Mid-Valley Women's Crisis Service plans to have all our educational materials on domestic violence and sexual violence available in Braille.

2001 Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Curriculum for Schools

Develop age-appropriate curriculum on domestic and sexual violence for all Marion County schools. The curriculum would offer kindergarten through 12th grade teachers a packet of information on how to provide age-appropriate information on these very difficult topics. For example, for younger children the curriculum would include information on how to stay safe and who to talk to if someone is hurting you or someone else in your family. As the curriculum progresses to the higher grades information will be added on sexual assault and other forms of violence against young women. Mid-Valley Women's Crisis Service will offer training to all teachers who plan to use the curriculum.

October 2001 - The curriculum has been written and awaiting reviews by experts in age appropriate materials for children. Materials will then be offered to the Salem-Keizer School Board for their review.

April 2006 – The MVWCS curriculum is available to every school in Marion County. Over the last year, eighteen trainings have been conducted by MVWCS staff to Marion County schools.

October 2001 - Marion County Silent Witnesses

Thanks to the fundraising efforts of District III offices of Adult and Family Services in our area, Marion County now has its own Silent Witness Exhibit. The silhouettes represent women who have been killed in Marion County by their abusers. Funds raised in 2000, provided enough funding for six figures. Mid-Valley also purchased a figure representing the children who have been killed in Marion County. The Silent Witnesses will be on display throughout the community over the years and figures will be added as new funds become available. If you would like more information on the witnesses, or would like to schedule the display at your event or place of business, email us at info@mvwcs.com.

May 2003 – We have added three additional Silent Witness figures. These figures will represent individuals who are elderly and individuals with disabilities that are victims of domestic and sexual violence. The Silent Witness representing the elderly are gray and the two witnesses representing individuals with disabilities are blue. To our knowledge, Mid-Valley Women’s Crisis Service is the only program in the nation to have Silent Witness figures representing these populations.

March 2003 – We have added five additional Silent Witness figures for Marion County. All are adult figures, representing women who have been murdered in our community.

March 2002 - We have added six new Silent Witness figures for Marion County. Two of the new figures are in white and represent victims of sexual assault. One is an adult figure and one represents a child.

October 2001 - Translation of Educational and Outreach Materials into Vietnamese

Mid-Valley WCS is submitting grants in order to have our written materials translated into Vietnamese. The materials will then be distributed throughout our community and made available on our web site.

August 2002 - Thanks to federal grant, all of our educational materials have now been translated into Vietnamese and are available on our website and in our office.

October 2001 - Tape Recording of our Educational Materials

Currently, Mid-Valley Women's Crisis Service is undertaking the process of having our educational materials recorded onto audiotapes and compact discs. When finished, tapes and compact discs of our domestic violence and rape/sexual assault educational packets will be made available to anyone who needs an alternative to printed materials.

February 2002 - The tape recordings in English are done. Thanks to grant funding we have accomplished this project and audio recordings are available through our office. We hope to have Spanish audio recordings done sometime in the future.

July 2001 - Marion County Outreach

Mid-Valley Women's Crisis Service covers all of Marion County. However, it sometimes feels as though the Salem area has the majority of services and support. Staff and volunteers are working hard to change this situation. For example, all of our posters, domestic and sexual violence packets, and safety plans, in English, Russian and Spanish, have been distributed throughout Marion County.

October 2001 - A new support group was recently added for women who speak Spanish and live in the greater Woodburn area. The group meets on Wednesday nights and offers childcare at no cost. For more information on the group call us at 503 378-1572 or call toll free in Oregon 1 866 399-7722.

Update April 2006 – MVWCS continues to provide support group services in Woodburn. The group provides a place for women who speak Spanish to receive support and education around the issues of domestic violence and sexual assault.

February 2001 - Translation of Educational and Outreach Materials into Russian

One project that is nearing completion is the translation of all of our materials into Russian. Through a grant with the Lorene Sails Higgins Charitable Trust, Mid-Valley was able to pay for the translation of our materials, training for the staff on cultural issues facing Russian women in our society and copying of the materials for distribution. Currently, all of our materials are available in English and Spanish. Some materials are also available in Braille.

July 2001 - All Done! Thanks to the Lorene Sails Higgins Charitable Trust

July 2000

The cement was no sooner dry on the Vietta Helmle Transition House playground, when we discovered the playground equipment at our safe shelter was in need of replacement. The equipment is over 10 years old and has endured the play of thousands of children over that time. We hope to have new playground equipment installed that will be there for all the children to come.

September 2001 - The playground equipment for Winston House Shelter has been installed. Our sincere thanks to Salem Downtown Rotary and Jeld Wen Foundation for providing the funds for the project.

January 2000 - Accessibility Renovations

We are currently in the process of making our office facilities handicap accessible. Through a grant from the Charla Richards- Kreitzberg Charitable Foundation we have been able to remodel our main floor bathroom and add wider doors in our counseling room. We are also adding handrails to our wheelchair accessible ramp at the office. With these very important changes, our office and shelter facilities will both meet ADA guidelines for accessibility.

March 2000 - All Done! Our thanks to the Charla Richards- Kreitzberg Charitable Foundation

July 1999 - Rape/Sexual Assault Survivor Support Group

Marion County has needed a Rape Survivors Support Group for many years. During the next year, Mid-Valley Women's Crisis Service hopes to provide a safe and supportive environment in which women in our community may begin the healing process after they have been sexually assaulted. This free, confidential group will be provided at no cost to participants.

September 2000 - The group meetings have started, they are held on Tuesday evenings at the MVWCS office. Call for more information at 503 378-1572.

July 1998 - Playground Equipment for Transition

Playground equipment is needed for our children at the Vietta Helmle Transition House. The facility, opened as transitional housing in 1994, has never had play equipment installed on the premises. The Transition House has never had playground equipment. The funds have already been raised for the Transition House equipment. We are just beginning the process of fundraising for shelter equipment. If you would like to contribute to this endeavor, please call or write to us ( see the MVWCS Welcome Page)

June 2000 - The playground equipment for Vietta Helmle Transition House has been installed. Our thanks to Washington Mutual Foundation, Gannett Foundation, William S. Walton Charitable Foundation and the Marion/Polk County Medical Auxiliary, for providing the funding for this project.

 

24 hour hotline: (503) 399-7722 or toll free in Oregon 1 (866) 399-7722
July 2006 © Mid-Valley Women's Crisis Service