The DOVES Program in Alliance is ready to continue serving the community at their new office location at 113 E 5th Street.
The DOVES Program, which has played an active role in providing support to survivors of sexual and domestic violence since 1979, serves nine counties in the Panhandle.
Rachelle Sutton-Corbett, Client Advocate, explained that the people who are helped by the program often see major impacts in their lives.
“We like to refer to them as survivors, because, with what they’re going through, they’ve survived a lot,” said Sutton-Corbett. “We want to empower anybody who goes through this. As a client advocate, we do one-on-ones, where we sit and we discuss things that are going on in their lives, and what abuse looks like. By helping people, they’re able to go on and live their lives with a healthier outlook on how they should be treated.
“It doesn’t just help them,” Sutton-Corbett said. “When an incident happens of any kind of violence, it doesn’t just affect the person it happened to. It’s a ripple effect.”
Sutton-Corbett explained that women are not the only people affected by sexual and domestic violence, noting that children and men can also be targets of abuse.
As the DOVES Program continues to offer support to survivors, a large focus will be on education—informing people about different types of abuse and providing resources to ensure safety.
“We teach people what a healthy relationship looks like, because we’ve had clients in here before and go, ‘Well, this boyfriend is better than the last one because they don’t hit me.’ That is just heartbreaking to hear that. So, we’re teaching them what a healthy relationship looks like, and what it doesn’t look like,” said Sutton-Corbett.
Other services offered through the DOVES Program include housing, custody support and providing survivors a safe space to discuss their experiences.
“The biggest thing that we do is that we hear what our survivors say,” Sutton-Corbett said. “We don’t judge. We do not judge anything. Safety planning is a big one. There is a lot of big things with our work. We have a unique perspective that we can help people out and show them, ‘You feel like your world is falling apart, and nothing’s ever going to get better, well this is what it could look like.’ We have many success stories, which is fantastic.”
The DOVES Program has a 24-hour help line that people can call for assistance: 866-95-DOVES. A 24-hour text line is also available for people to text at 515-599-6620.
Sutton-Corbett explained that at the beginning of November, there were six staff members, noting that the number of staff has risen to 14. She explained that they are excited to be in the new location, and that they are eager to launch new projects.
“We have a Hands for Growing project that has been going on in Sidney for 15 years that we are in the process of expanding it here,” said Sutton-Corbett. “It’s a program for sixth, seventh and eighth graders where they grow a garden. Growing a garden is very similar to growing a relationship. As you’re growing a garden, you’re learning all these things about growing a relationship.”
People are encouraged to stop by the new location to learn more about how the program can help people throughout the community.