Greenwich YWCA, United Way Host Community Planning Council

GREENWICH, CT - From The Greenwich United Way: The Greenwich United Way hosted its second Community Planning Council meeting of the 2017/18 fiscal year on Tuesday, October 17, titled Basic Human Needs/Mental Illness: YWCA Domestic Abuse Services. The presentation was led by, Mary Lee Kiernan, President and CEO, YWCA Greenwich; Meredith Gold, YWCA Director of Domestic Abuse Services; and Brent Reeves, Sergeant, Special Victims Unit Supervisor, Greenwich Police Department.

The Community Planning Council was established by Greenwich United Way to encourage the most effective and efficient health and human service delivery system for Greenwich. Comprised of community leaders, nonprofit service professionals, Greenwich United Way board members, and community volunteers, the work of the Planning Council, particularly through its periodic Needs Assessments, has led to the development of some of the Town’s most valued programs and institutions. The Domestic Abuse Services (DAS) at YWCA of Greenwich is a direct result of the Greenwich United Way Needs Assessment. The organization is one of 18 state-authorized domestic violence service agencies in Connecticut and the only agency that serves a single town. The DAS partners with the Greenwich Police Department’s Special Victims Section to provide services to the victim and to hold the offender accountable, although most cases go unreported to the police. DAS services are free and confidential.

Domestic violence cuts across socio-economic lines. Approximately 15-20 victims of domestic violence die each year in CT. In Greenwich in 2016, there were 4,100 calls to the DAS hotline and the GPD investigated 308 cases of domestic violence. The DAS provided 3,600 counseling sessions to 600 individuals. DAS provided emergency shelter to 59 victims and advocated for 239 victims in court in 2016. The DAS provides a broad range of services to victims: crisis intervention, emergency shelter, counseling, court advocacy, children and youth programs, community outreach, and professional trainings. DAS has trained the Greenwich High School football team and coaches for the past 4 years and delivers violence prevention curriculum in the classrooms of all public middle schools and Greenwich High.

Over the next several years, the GPD will continue to focus on its training programs, including additional training in strangulation investigations and on an enhanced response to children exposed to violence. "As the police department's Domestic Abuse Service instructor I train all officers to conduct these investigations with sensitivity and provide the officers with domestic violence investigation packets," explained Reeves. He continued, "Our department was one of the first 11 police departments in the State, in 2012, to use the Lethality Assessment Protocol to assess the level of danger that domestic violence survivors are in." Additional needs for services to address domestic violence are legal representation, affordable housing, professional training, and prevention workshops for children.

The next Community Planning Council meeting topic will focus on youth and feature a conversation with Dr. Jill Gildea, Greenwich Public Schools Superintendent. The next public Community Planning Council meeting will be on Tuesday, December 5, at 7:30 a.m. at the Greenwich Town Hall Meeting Room. This meeting is the Greenwich United Way’s Annual Legislative Breakfast with State Representatives and the First Selectman, Peter Tesei. For more information please visit Greenwich United Way online (greenwichunitedway.org).

Photo courtesy of Greenwich YWCA