From news release
Rock River Current
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ROCKFORD — The Mayor’s Office of Domestic and Community Violence Prevention has won two federal grants designed to help the city develop programs to prevent domestic violence and help youth recover from trauma.
The grants from the Department of Justice total more than $1 million over 36 months.
A grant from the Office on Violence Against Women will support a project designed to encourage men and boys to work as allies with women, girls and marginalized communities to prevent domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, stalking and sex trafficking.
The grant will help the city develop and implement a program for community organizations to incorporate education and training into their existing work with male clients to prevent violence against women and girls. Partners include the YMCA, Boys & Girls Club of Rockford, Rockford Park District, The Wright Way and the Liam Foundation.
“We are thrilled to be bringing more than $1 million to our community for crime prevention and intervention efforts for our youth,” Mayor Tom McNamara said in a news release. “I’m grateful to the Department of Justice for allocating these funds to Rockford and to Sen. Dick Durbin for his ongoing support of our local initiatives.”
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A separate grant from the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention will be used to create a Community Healing Center at the Boys and Girls Club on Kilburn Avenue.
Similar to the Family Peace Center model, this center will be a multiagency, multidisciplinary facility where children exposed to violence and their families can receive supportive services that promote trauma recovery, youth development, and violence prevention and interventions.
Partners in this project include Winnebago County Juvenile Probation, the city’s Health and Human Services Department, Rockford Police Department, Boys & Girls Club of Rockford, Region 1 Planning Council, Carrie Lynn Children’s Center, Family Peace Center, RAMP, Winnebago County State’s Attorney’s Office, The Wright Way and Youth Services Network.
“Too many American children carry the burden of trauma after being exposed to violence at such a young age. Often, these kids are left without support to cope with their experience,” Durbin said in a news release. “I’ve made it a priority to ensure that federal funding is available to Illinois communities to help break the cycle of violence and improve access to services for children who have lived through trauma.”