SEMO Family Violence Council

A not-for-profit organization headquartered in Bonne Terre which provides services to women and children who are victims of domestic violence. It serves 5 Missouri counties – St. Francois, Ste. Genevieve, Iron, Madison and Washington. Services provided include but are not limited to legal representation, counseling, advisory services, housing assistance and a temporary safe haven known as “A Friend’s Place” shelter which is located in rural Bonne Terre. The shelter can provide housing for 32 women and children for up to 90 days. It is supported by grants, federal and state funding and community donations as well as numerous fund raising projects.

Transitional Housing is the long-term goal of Sister’s which would provide housing for victims who are ready to leave their abusers.  Once they have decided to leave permanently, they would be allowed to house here for 2-3 years until they could mainstream into traditional housing. Women in a domestic violence crisis situation need this amount of time to get their lives back on track, find sufficient stable income and become able to move into their own home. The shelter provides a very short term, safe solution. The HUD waiting list is long and these women don’t have money saved for rent deposits, utility deposits, down payments, etc. They need a place where they can focus on getting their lives started again. A project in St. Louis known as Lydia’s House would be an example of a successful program of this type. This is a lofty goal for our project by it’s where we’ll get one of these days with the assistance and support of our community.