' No More' campaign hopes to breaks the silence of domestic violence

The Auglaize County Crisis Center is using October to “revisit the silence” and lack of knowledge about domestic violence and sexual assault.

Agency Executive Director Shirley Longsworth said they are participating in a “No More” awareness campaign, where they ask other organizations to break that silence often associated with domestic violence.

Additionally a Quilt of Hope will be traveling around Auglaize County to be displayed various churches. The quilt was created by domestic violence survivors and their dependents and will help promote that message.

Longsworth hopes people will learn about the short- term and long- term dynamics of family violence. She said 109 people in Ohio died from domestic violence between June 2019 and June 2020. Longsworth said this represented a 35 percent increase from the previous year.

Longsworth also drew attention to resources being stretched thin because of funding decreases at the federal and state level. The federal crime victims fund, for example, was cut by about 30 percent.

She said at the state level Ohio receives $ 1 million dollars for shelter, risk assessments and risk reduction while Indiana receives $ 5 million dollars and other states receive even more.

She explained they use funds locally to support victim advocacy, housing assistance, and building protective measures in a family system.

Despite COVID- 19, Longsworth said her goal is to continue to deliver service at the level they promised to families.

“Survivors at times lack prioritization,” Longsworth said.

The cut backs come right as professionals see an increase in need for service. She said they have continued to reassess and revisit budgets and have been able to make essential cuts in every area except service delivery.

Despite cutbacks, the need for services remains strong. Crisis Center officials said they received 2,732 crisis calls from Oct. 1, 2019 to Sept. 30, 2020. Longsworth said her goal is to continue to deliver service at the level they promised to families, although transportation in some cases has been affected due to COVID19 risks. She said they continue to provide sanitation and encourage mask wearing in addition to following guidelines for congregate settings.

Longsworth said the Crisis Center will ask for CARES Act dollars to make up for budget reductions amid a rising need for services.