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Our Work Today WCS~DdM continually strives to improve our innovative and ground-breaking programs. As members of statewide coalitions of domestic violence and sexual assault agencies, we advocate for policy change and remain informed by the latest evidence-based policies and best practices. WCS~DdM espouses the "trauma-informed" approach to client services, which aims to address clients' multiple vulnerabilities and avoids institutional re-traumatization.  | --- | Currently, our crisis services include a 24-hour crisis line and emergency response, peer counseling, advocacy, accompaniment, confidential emergency shelter, emergency transportation to the shelter or other safe location, legal assistance with restraining orders, court accompaniments, information and referrals, professional counseling and support groups. Services for children who have witnessed domestic violence include individual paraprofessional counseling sessions where age-appropriate safety plans are developed, children and youth groups, and referrals and advocacy for supportive services. Prevention services include Healthy Families Workshops for parents with concurrent Children and Youth Groups, outreach activities in high-risk neighborhoods, and community education presentations on domestic violence and sexual assault prevention. Twice per year, we conduct a State Certified Training for Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Peer Counselors. |
Annually, WCS~DdM provides approximately 1,300 crisis intervention services to victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. Individual counseling services are provided to approximately 600 women, and support group sessions for over 200 women. Legal assistance is provided for over 450 women, over 100 restraining order applications are filed, and about 125 women are accompanied to court proceedings. The confidential emergency shelter provides nearly 2,000 shelter bed nights to women and children in imminent danger from domestic violence or sexual assault. Children's individual counseling sessions are provided for over 100 children, and an average of 25 children and youth attend group sessions each week. Prevention programs provide educational services, information and referrals to approximately 150 families. We are a Latina-based agency, and many of our efforts are directed at the under-served Latino population in Santa Cruz County. All of our crisis intervention and prevention services are available in Spanish and English and are culturally sensitive. Printed materials are available in both languages. Our outreach efforts concentrate on poor Latino neighborhoods with residents that have several barriers to seeking services, including language and literacy issues, legal status issues, and cultural biases. We are extremely proud of our success in serving this special population.
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