Citizens of Laurens County came out in full force to support an awareness event held in honor of Brantley Smith, a 2 year old who recently passed away as a result of physical and sexual abuse. Beyond Abuse was one of many agencies on hand to increase awareness of child abuse and the services offered to victims.
pictured below: Melissa Macias, Education Specialist and Deanna Kelly, Family Advocate
Beyond Abuse staff participated both Clinton and Abbeville’s annual Night Out event that was held Tuesday Aug. 7, 2018 which are part of the larger National Night Out Campaign.
National Night Out is an annual community-building campaign that promotes police-community partnerships and neighborhood camaraderie to make our neighborhoods safer, more caring places to live. National Night Out enhances the relationship between neighbors and law enforcement while bringing back a true sense of community. Furthermore, it provides a great opportunity to bring police and neighbors together under positive circumstances.
Family Advocate, Deanna Kelly, who works closely with Law Enforcement and the community was on hand to help increase awareness of the services that our agency provides to victims of child abuse and sexual assault at the Clinton event while Melisssa Macias, Education Specialist represented the agency at the Abbeville event.
Beyond Abuse would like to thank the Sertoma Club of Greenwood for their donation to assist in improving signage for the campus. This is one of many facility and campus improvements in the 5 year strategic plan for the agency.
Presenting the check on behalf of Sertoma is Jimmy McGovern. A big shout out to Stan and his crew for their hard work.
Beyond Abuse was awarded a $10,000 grant from the Greenwood County Sheriff’s Office. The funds were made available by the Victims Fines, Fees, and Assessments fund which is managed by the State office of Victims Assistance (SOVA). These funds can only be used for Direct Victim Services. These funds will allow the agency to continue to offer timely services such as forensic interviews, advocacy, counseling, and crisis response to victims of child abuse and sexual assault in Greenwood County. “This is a testament to the strong and supportive working relationship that exists between the agency and law enforcement” stated Cathy Miller, Executive Director of Beyond Abuse.
pictured below:
Jessica Bell, Beyond Abuse-Director Client Services, Cathy Miller, Executive Director of Beyond Abuse, Sheriff Dennis Kelly, and Law Enforcement Victims Advocates, Catie Maffett and Eboni Sanders.
The Board of Directors and staff at Beyond Abuse would like to thank Countybank for their recent donation to assist with the Agency’s ongoing facility improvement plan. This gift will allow us to install security cameras and replace doors in our modular building to make the campus safer for staff and clients.
A big shout out to Countybank for supporting local non profits and improving the community!
pictured below are:
Lisa Tolbert -Countybank, Cathy Miller – Beyond Abuse, and David Tompkins – Countybank
Volunteer Training ended June 19th with 2 new Graduate Interns, 1 new Volunteer for Laurens, and 1 staff member who completed training as a refresher. Thanks to all of our volunteers for assisting in our efforts to provide services to victims of child abuse and sexual assault.
Quarterly staff meetings include “Self Care” activities as a way for employees to decrease stress, increase relaxation and deal with challenging emotional situations that they face in their day to day work environment. June’s staff meeting was led by Bess Park who gave an overview of the benefit of Yoga for Sexual Trauma victims as well as self care. The lecture was followed by an interactive demonstration. A big THANK YOU to Bess for such an informative meeting!!
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Please contact Elizabeth Wise, Victim Services Manager at 864 227 1623 or email ewise@beyondabuse.info to register for Beyond Abuse’s next Volunteer training class which will be held June 11, 12, 13, 18, 19. This is a 25 hour certification program with 15 hours of class room instruction and 10 hours of online training.
We are so thankful to the volunteers from First Baptist Church who came out Saturday morning to spruce up the campus! Twenty one man hours were used to cut trees, trim bushes, spread pine straw, and send fire ants underground!!! The team, led by Dan English, was one of many that saturated the Greenwood Community as part of the Church’s annual “Operation In As Much”, which is based on Matthew 25:40: “And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.”
Beyond Abuse staff wore denim in support of Denim Day as a part of Sexual Assault Awareness Month. Denim Day is a campaign aimed at protesting flawed and biased attitudes concerning sexual violence. It was launched after the enrage that ensued an overturned rape conviction in Italy due to the justices’ claim that since the victim was wearing tight jeans, she must have helped the perpetrator remove her jeans, thereby implying consent. The following day, women in the Italian Parliament came to work wearing jeans in solidarity with the victim. We at Beyond Abuse also stand in solidarity with all sexual assault victims.
Beyond Abuse is a 501(c)(3) organization that is working to eradicate sexual violence and child abuse in our community. Our community support is vital, and our partnerships are strong. We are making a difference, thanks to you.
Greenwood:
(864) 227-1623
contact@beyondabuse.info