The Advocates' Voice
January/February 2012
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Click here
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DV Meeting Calendar
| | Click here for the January DV Meeting Calendar. |
Upcoming Trainings
| To view a listing of
upcoming national and
regional trainings,
click here.
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DCADV Events
Save the Dates!
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DV101 Training
When: March 6 & 7, 2012
Where: Delaware Technical & Community College, Terry Campus, Dover
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DCADV's Annual Advocates' Retreat
When: May 14 & 15, 2012
Where: Atlantic Sands Hotel, Rehoboth
Details and registration will be available soon on the DCADV website.
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January is National Stalking Awareness Month. Click here for more information.
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 | Did you know?
- 6% of 15-year-olds in Delaware public schools report having been physically abused by a boyfriend/girlfriend.
- The rate of teens who report experiencing physical dating abuse increases by 117% between ages 15 and 18, to 13% of 18-year-olds.
- 21% of Delaware public school females report having been verbally abused by a boyfriend or girlfriend.
- 1 out of 5 Delaware girls in 8th, 10th, and 12th grades have experienced verbal abuse.
Learn about Teen Dating Violence Awareness & Prevention Month.
Visit some great resources for teens at www.loveisrespect.org and www.safeandrespectful.org.
Join us in February as we promote healthy relationships for all teens!
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Free and Easy Ways
to Support DCADV
Every Day
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DCADV is now part of GoodSearch.com, a company that helps nonprofits raise funds through the everyday actions of supporters like you.
Here's how it works:
Use GoodSearch when you search the internet - they will donate a penny to DCADV every time you do. Use GoodShop.com when you shop online - they work with more than 2,500 major brands, have over 100,000 coupons, and donate a percentage of every purchase you make to us. Enroll in GoodDining.com - they will donate up to 6% of every dollar you spend when you eat at one of 10,000 participating restaurants. Please join our community on GoodSearch.com and help us raise money for our mission. Get started by clicking the "Become a Supporter" button on our profile page here!
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Happy New Year from the DCADV Staff!
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2011 Annual Meeting
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Attorney General Beau Biden
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DCADV's Annual Meeting and Breakfast was held on December 15, 2011, at Dover Downs in Dover, where members and friends looked back on a year of accomplishments. Delaware Attorney General Beau Biden spoke about the important role DCADV and its partners play in providing services to victims of domestic violence in Delaware and in promoting domestic violence prevention.  | Cherelyn Homlish and
Susan Miller |
DCADV Director of Communications and Development Stephanie Ferrell and Executive Director Carol Post reviewed key events throughout Fiscal Year 2011 and acknowledged our many collaborators. Board Chair Cherelyn Homlish presented outgoing Board Member Susan Miller with a certificate for her years of dedicated service to the Coalition.  | |
Carolyn Morgan
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Board Member and Chair of the Women of Color Task Force Carolyn Morgan concluded the event with a spirited appeal for continued support of DCADV through Supporting Membership. Click here to view or download DCADV's 2011 Annual Report, presented at the Annual Meeting, or contact us to request a paper copy.
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"Packs for Pride" Benefit Children Impacted by Domestic Violence
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Eagles player Steve Smith, Verizon Wireless President of Philadelphia Tri-State Region Mario Turco, Stephanie Ferrell, and "Swoop"
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DCADV and People's Place staff attended an exciting event kicking off this year's "Packs for Pride" program in December. Eagles wide receiver Steve Smith and the Eagles "Swoop" mascot joined Santa Claus to distribute the more than 1,000 backpacks Verizon Wireless employees had filled with toys, games, books, and necessities such as clothing and toiletries to be distributed to children in local shelters serving victims of domestic violence. People's Place was one of the beneficiaries and will share the packs with children in shelter and the community throughout the next year.
The "Packs for Pride" program was started in 2001 and has been instituted as an additional component to Verizon Wireless' annual HopeLine activities. Verizon Wireless' Philadelphia Region has donated nearly 1,200 stuffed backpacks to local shelters. In addition, Verizon Wireless employees have volunteered more than 250 hours of time to organize items, stuff backpacks, and deliver the Packs for Pride to the recipient domestic violence shelters. Employees have also contributed a total of $1,000 toward the purchase of items for the Packs for Pride initiative.
The packs are so important because children often enter shelter or other domestic violence programs with only the clothes on their backs. They bring joy and comfort at Christmas, on birthdays, and other times throughout the year.
Thanks to Verizon Wireless for this generous donation!
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DCADV Membership Drive
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| DCADV Welcomes New Staff Members | |
Jacqueline Greenidge Nix, Grants and Operations Manager
This part-time position is new to the organization and Jacqueline will be responsible for several critical internal functions, including grants and contract management and human resources processes. Jacqueline worked in the grants management and HR field for nearly a decade in Delaware. She holds a Master of Business Administration degree from Widener University in Pennsylvania.
Rebecca Klug, Administrative and Communications Specialist
Rebecca joined DCADV's Communications and Development team in October. She brings to the position a ten-year background in administrative support and print and web publications. Rebecca holds a Master's degree in Anthropology from the University of Iowa.
We welcome these two great new additions to the DCADV team!
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Why Be Trauma-Informed About Domestic Violence?
| Last year, DCADV and community partners NAMI Delaware and the Center for Disabilities Studies at the University of Delaware were awarded a three-year grant from the Office on Violence Against Women to improve and expand services to individuals with disabilities, including mental illness, who experience domestic violence. This project complements the Mental Health and Trauma Project begun by DCADV in a national collaborative in 2009. This article is Part Three of our three-part series on Disabilities and Domestic Violence.
What is trauma?
Trauma is not a single event; rather, it is an experience that overwhelms an individual emotionally, cognitively, and physically, and shapes their way of being in the world. Recurrent exposure to threats toward one's physical and/or emotional well-being means a person is in a constant state of hyperarousal, and recent studies suggest that this experience actually alters brain function, structure, and neurochemical systems, with negative effects on both mind and body.
How does the trauma of domestic violence impact victims?
The trauma of domestic violence can include pervasive and ongoing physical, emotional, and psychological harm, and can be complicated by factors such as poverty, inability to access services, societal stigma, addiction, and disability. This trauma can compromise one's ability to thoughtfully plan, develop healthy relationships, and take care of oneself. It can lead to increased tension, anxiety, depression, dissociation, emotional changes, substance abuse to manage feelings, and posttraumatic stress disorder.
Victims may exhibit behaviors that are a direct response to the abuse that may look like, but are not necessarily a sign of, mental illness. Abuse can trigger suicide attempts, psychotic episodes, homelessness, and slow recovery from mental illness. Victims may feel powerless and hopeless, fearful and distrusting toward even those who want to help them.
How does a trauma-informed approach help with domestic violence?
A trauma-informed approach provides a lens through which domestic violence advocates and mental health providers can understand the impact of trauma in a social and environmental context. It recognizes the biological, emotional, cognitive, spiritual, and interpersonal impact of domestic violence and the pervasiveness of this trauma in so many domains of culture and institutions. It normalizes the human response to trauma, and understands that some problematic behaviors and/or symptoms are really coping responses to the trauma.
If providers are trauma-informed, they can reduce retraumatization by responding in ways that are noncoercive and destigmatizing and by preparing for trauma triggers. We understand domestic violence in the context of lifetime and transgenerational trauma and support the creation of environments that are safe and nurturing and focus on empowerment, choice, and control.
Dr. Sandy Bloom, author of Destroying Sanctuary, writes: "Decades of clinical experience and previous research have demonstrated that creating a trauma-informed culture in and of itself could help staff and clients make better recoveries than has previously been possible."
We at DCADV are very excited about our collaborative disability and mental health projects aimed at increasing knowledge among all providers who interact with victims of domestic violence and working to improve the services available to them.
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