The Alexander City Outlook

By Laura Pemberton, Staff Writer

Women and children do not have to live with violence.

That is the message the Domestic Violence and Intervention Center wants everyone to understand.

Their mission statement reads, “the overall mission of DVIC is to eliminate violence in the lives of women and children in the five county area we serve by providing direct services to domestic violence victims which in term will make them less likely to return to the abuser.”

Funding from the Lake Martin Area United Way helps them to provide these services.

“United Way funding helps us in numerous ways,” said Executive Director Lisa Stephens. “It helps us provide emergency aid, medical supplies, counseling, transportation, fund the shelter and provide food and toiletry items for victims.”

The center operates Safehouse, a temporary shelter for battered women and their children. Safehouse provides victims a safe place to escape from immediate danger and make plans for the future.

The center said in 2010 they sheltered 96 people, served 171 people through out-of-shelter services, answered 370 crisis calls and referred 97 calls to the legal criminal justice system.

Stephens said the DVIC is the only organization of its kind in the area. The center is located in Opelika, but services Chambers, Lee, Macon, Randolph and Tallapoosa counties.

“Accessing these services affects victims’ lives in tremendous ways,” Stephens said. “It helps women live violence-free lives and, most importantly, can keep people safe.”

The center operates a 24-hour crisis line at 1-800-650-6522, and all calls are confidential. For more information visit their website at www.dvic1.org.