Lake Havasu non-profit helps victims of abuse
Profiles of groups getting grants from specialty plates
This summer, 16 Arizona non-profits shared $425,000 in grants from the “It Shouldn’t Hurt to be a Child” specialty license-plate program.
The license-plate program was started in 1999 as a joint effort between The Arizona Republic/azcentral.com, the Governor’s Office of Youth, Faith and Family and the Arizona Community Foundation. Since then, more than $9 million has been distributed to agencies working to prevent child abuse and neglect.
The license plates are $25, $17 of which goes to the agencies. Get your plate at servicearizona.com.
This series takes a closer look at the work being done by the non-profits. Featured today: Haven Family Resource Center. Haven Family Resource Center, Lake Havasu City
Grant amount: $8,500. 928-505-3153, havenfamilyresourcecenter.com.
Mary Lou O’Connell has been with Haven Family Resource Center since the beginning. She was one of the first few people when the agency started and now oversees the entire organization as executive director.
O’Connell said Haven started when a group of people realized victims of abuse potentially had to relive trauma because they had to tell their story multiple times at different agencies to get help. The organization works with other agencies to help reduce trauma to victims and serves Mohave and La Paz counties, as well as surrounding tribal reservations.
Haven’s mission is to “provide a safe, home-like environment for victims to access services.” The organization offers basic needs, counseling services and a 24-hour crisis hotline. In addition, Haven houses a child abuse prevention council.
“Instead of just responding to crimes, we wanted to prevent them before they happened,” O’Connell said.
For child abuse prevention, Haven offers outreach programs that identify child abuse and explain how to report it, positive parenting classes and workshops and general education services for parents, caregivers and anyone who works with children.
O’Connell said stress can be hard on parents, so it’s important to educate them on parenting. A lack of education can also be a risk factor, so Haven teaches parents everything from discipline to parenting in public.
“There’s a fine line between child abuse and discipline especially for young parents,” she said. “We want to just teach them how to handle being a young parent.”
In addition to these educational services, Haven also holds various events to help inform the community. Jessica Reed has attended a few of the events with her children and said they are a “great resource.”
Jessica Reed, who has two children ages 6 and 8, started going to the events after hearing about them from another mother.
“Children and life do not come with a how-to guide,” she said. “You don’t want someone telling you how to raise your children, but that’s not how they work. They guide you and give you tips.”
One session that Reed and her children attended focused on the movie Inside Out, which centers on a child learning how to deal with her emotions after experiencing a life-changing event.
“It was all about feelings and how to talk about those feelings, and how parents can strike up conversations with their children about feelings,” Reed said.
The “It Shouldn’t Hurt to be a Child” grant program is primarily funded by the sale of the specialty license plate. Get yours at servicearizona.org. Additional funds are provided by the BHHS Legacy Foundation, Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust, The Virginia G. Piper Charitable Trust and the Valley of the Sun United Way.