Safe Shelter History
Safe Shelter was founded in 1978 as a grass roots organization
to fill the unmet need for services for battered women and children.
Before this and the national 9-1-1 emergency call line, there was a
resource telephone line set up in Boulder, Colorado to handle crisis
calls. One evening, a phone call came from a woman with two children.
She had used her last dime to place the call. In the background, the
trained volunteer could hear an angry male voice. The woman asked desperately
where she could take herself and her two children to be safe, as she
had just been beaten by her husband. Before the trained volunteer could
answer, the woman screamed and the line went dead. The police were called
in and they were able to ascertain that the call came from the Longmont,
Colorado area. They conducted an extensive search of the area pay telephones
and the local hospitals but could not find her. No one ever knew what
became of this woman and her two children, but she became the catalyst
for a serious discussion of what the community of Longmont could do
to protect its victims of domestic violence.
The solution came in implementing a telephone line manned
by volunteers. For five years, these volunteers would offer their homes
to women and children in distress. This became the Longmont Coalition
for Women in Crisis. Eventually, seed money came in the way of grant
funding, and in 1984, LCWC opened its first Shelter for battered women
and children, while the counseling and administration offices operated
out of a community church. In 1996, the counseling office moved into
its current location. On October 23, 2003, the Board of Directors voted
to change the name of the nonprofit to Safe Shelter of St. Vrain Valley.
Today, Safe Shelter provides a comprehensive set of domestic
violence services, and is regarded in the community as a professional,
stable, mission-driven organization governed by a dedicated volunteer
Board of Directors with the day to day operations managed by an experienced
and committed staff. The mission adopted by Safe Shelter is: “To provide safety, support and resources to individuals affected by domestic abuse. We promote empowerment through direct services and community education, advocating for the right of every individual to live a life free of intimidation, exploitation and abuse.”
About
Safe Shelter
