Women’s Center of Montgomery County

Who We Are

With our primary focus on eliminating domestic violence and other forms of abuse, the Women’s Center of Montgomery County is a membership organization that has been volunteer-powered since its inception in 1976, providing services which include:

A 24-hour domestic violence hotline
Elder abuse counseling and supportive services
Individualized peer and group domestic violence counseling
Telephone counseling, information and referral
Legal advocacy
Court and hospital accompaniment
Emergency relocation funding for victims of domestic violence
Education, and outreach to the community and schools

Our programs are administered by more than 185 trained volunteers and a paid staff of 13 full and part-time employees in our seven offices throughout Montgomery County, Pennsylvania.

Maria Macaluso, Executive Director
email: wcwebmail@womenscentermc.org

Our Impact

July 1, 2018 through June 30, 2019

4944

TOTAL NEW VICTIMS SERVED

7363

TOTAL COUNSELING HOURS

905

HEALTHCARE WORKERS TRAINED

189

COMMUNITY PROGRAMS

Strategies for Achieving Our Mission

To achieve our primary organizational purpose – working to eliminate domestic violence so individuals can live safer, more stable lives and thrive – the strategies we take include:

Safety

Promote physical, social and emotional safety of individuals impacted by DV:

Run an effective, accessible hotline

Provide one-on-one advocacy (Legal, Medical, Housing, Employment)

Court advocacy, court accompaniment and PFA assistance

Provide access to immigration services

Develop access to comprehensive legal representation

Develop interventions and enhance cultural sensitivity to respond to the unique safety challenges of diverse vulnerable populations

Strengthen high-quality trauma-informed services

Education

Educate and advocate to prevent, avoid and reduce the incidence of domestic violence:

Conduct targeted community education programs

Advocate to increase public awareness

Provide DV protocol and identification training for first responders

Projects

Implement special projects to address unmet needs and underserved populations:

Provide effective interventions and services to help them find safety and stability

Promote cultural awareness, acceptance and inclusion, within our organization and community

Become supportive, effective allies in challenging the barriers and myths that isolate and frustrate individual victims and communities

Our Goal

In addition to affecting positive change for individuals, our goal is to create institutional change and reduce the impact of domestic violence, creating a cultural shift towards healthier, safer communities.

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Our Accomplishments

We are the fifth largest domestic violence service provider in PA, with the strongest trained volunteer workforce. Among our other assets are our strategic use of technology, multiple locations, reputation as a quality training provider, and our ability to provide direct service needs of a large and diverse number of victims.

Our major accomplishments include:

1992

Medical Advocacy Project, one of three PA pilot projects, became a national prototype for suburban hospital settings.
2004

Citizens Bank’s first Mid-Atlantic Community Champion
2008

Identified by the PA Commission on Crime & Delinquency as one of 5 victim service agencies exemplifying best practices for organizational capacity building.
2012

Achieved third place award from Impact 100 Philadelphia, accompanied by a $23,500 prize.
2013

Expanded medical advocacy program to promote universal screening for domestic violence through the obstetrics and pediatric healthcare providers to increase the identification and treatment of children at risk as they witness violence in their home.
2013

As one of 13 PA test sites, expanded police referral process to include a Lethality Assessment Tool for responding officers to assess victim safety and escalating risk, connecting the victim immediately with a counselor.
2014

Received $25,000 award from Verizon Foundation in recognition of our middle school prevention education curriculum.
2015

Designated by court to serve as the first responder to victims seeking an Emergency Protection order. Emergency orders address the after- hours emergency needs of victims when the courthouse is closed.
2016

Produced PFA Court Orientation video broadcast at courthouse and on our website.
2017

Received Barra Award, recognizing organizational leadership, performance and adaptability.
2019

Awarded three-year grant to establish Alternative Safe Housing and Transitional Housing Program.