MAAV Awarded A Generous $8000 Partner Grant From Foundation Trust

Melrose, MA: The Melrose Alliance Against Violence has been awarded a Premier Partner grant by The Foundation Trust to develop and implement a Children’s Domestic Violence Support Group to be held in person and support those in and around Melrose, MA. MAAV will work in collaboration with Foundation Trust personnel and resources to establish this group. The grant will fund the program from inception through the first year.

MAAV was established in 1995 and has a strong track record of partnering with schools and community agencies to prevent interpersonal violence. The core of MAAV’s mission is to prevent domestic violence (DV) before it begins, but we also strive to support survivors where they are currently. We offer resources and referrals as well as a support group for adult survivors of DV and expanding these services to include the children impacted by these traumas is a need and a natural fit.

The Foundation Trust is a private operating foundation whose mission is to improve overall worldwide response to trauma through training and education disseminated through their resource website, www.complextrauma.org. They also strive to actively develop new programming for high-risk populations in partnership with small New England-based nonprofits. With four tracks of focus, Foundation Trust has awarded this grant under the program area of “overcoming trauma and adversity” and will work with MAAV over the course of FY24 to co-develop the curriculum, offer mentorship, and support and establish a program that will be sustainable for MAAV to continue beyond the initial sessions. The pilot Children’s Domestic Violence Support Group will run twice in FY24 with 8-week sessions to be held in Fall 2023 and Spring 2024 and be offered to two separate cohorts of children who will be offered spots based on confidential referrals.

MAAV’s Executive Director, Crystal Johnson, shares “We [MAAV] could not be more excited to pilot this project. There is a huge need for targeted, trauma-informed services for this population. Many clinicians are at full capacity, don’t have the proper training, or are unable to offer free or affordable clinical services. I believe this project is an intervention in nature, but also deeply preventative ensuring children gain the skills and have opportunities to build resilience in order to break free from the cycle of abuse.”

Adds the Foundation Trust’s Executive Director, Dr. Joseph Spinazzola, “We share MAAV’s excitement about this partnership project. It affords a unique opportunity for us to join forces to create a vital new resource that will benefit vulnerable children from Melrose and surrounding communities for many years to come.”

According to the 2011 Juvenile Justice Bulletin on Children’s Exposure to Intimate Partner Violence and Other Family Violence, 17.9% of children of all ages have been exposed to physical intimate partner violence in their lifetime, or about 13.6 million children. Witnessing this behavior and living in an environment filled with toxic stress and trauma has lasting effects on the children’s academic success, health, and even their own relationships well into adulthood. This programming will help the children: break their silence, know they are not alone, work through their grief of the loss of their family unit, and stop the cycle of abuse. MAAV is committed to sustaining the Children’s DV Support group beyond the grant through fundraising efforts and donations from key donors so we may continue to offer a safe space outside the family unit for children impacted by domestic violence and provide them with the tools to overcome their trauma and go on to have healthy lives and relationships as they move forward.

For more information please visit www.maav.org. To learn further about Foundation Trust, visit www.foundationtrust.org or www.complextrauma.org