COVID-19 Address

Dear Community Members,

We know victims and survivors face tremendous barriers in several different ways. This pandemic adds additional barriers. It is important for people to know that if you are experiencing abuse, that there is help out there for you. While public officials advise staying home (and we agree if you are able and safe at home), you never have to stay in a dangerous or unsafe situation. Staying home does not mean staying in an unsafe home.

The 25 direct service providers for victims and survivors of sexual and domestic violence and their children are still open, and victim services are still available. Please visit the KCSDV website to find the advocacy organization nearest to you – either for help or to lend your support and help: https://www.kcsdv.org/find-help/in-kansas/dv-sa-services-map/. Any victim can call the Kansas Crisis Hotline at 888-363-2287 anytime 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days of the year and be connected to a trained Victim Advocate. It is at no cost to the victim (free), always voluntary, and confidential.

Although in general we are all at varying degrees practicing physical distancing, we are and can be still socially connected. We encourage everyone, especially victims and survivors, to remain connected or be connected to those you trust and with whom you have mutual respect.

We remain committed to our mission of preventing and eliminating sexual and domestic violence, which includes dating violence and stalking. We are still working for you and our communities. We appreciate our partners and our coalition member programs that are located in cities and communities all across the state that are also still working, still open, still available – sometimes in new ways.

We know this is a difficult time for everyone. We are worried about our colleagues, our families, our loved ones, those on the front lines, those who are infected, and those who are most at risk. We are grieving lives lost – not just to COVID-19 but also of those whose funerals we were not able to attend. This pandemic has presented us all with so many challenges and changes, but we are in this together.

We acknowledge too that this might be even more challenging and difficult for those that we as a society have put more at risk and are thus more vulnerable to not being able to stay home, protect themselves and their families, and more. During this time, we would like to honor space for acknowledging privilege as well.

Thank you to our staff, our partners, and all first responders, including medical professionals, nurses, and victim advocates for your service during this sad and unprecedented time. Like you, each of us individually at KCSDV is experiencing loneliness, sadness, grief, anxiety, hopefulness, anticipation, fear, helplessness, hopelessness, love, community support, differences in our daily lives – with forced flexibility, uncertainty, zero planning, caution, and sometimes additional hats called “essential worker,” “non-essential worker,” “teacher,” “food and grocery runner,” “news anchor,” “napper,” and “Netflix binger.”

We wish everyone peace, safety, and health. We are thinking of you!

Please feel free to connect:

Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | LinkedIn | Youtube

Take Good Care,
Joyce Grover, KCSDV Executive Director, and the Entire KCSDV Team

Newsletter (PDF)

This project was supported by Grant No. 2019-MU-AX-0021 awarded by the Office on Violence Against Women, U.S. Department of Justice. The opinions, findings, conclusions, and recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Department of Justice, Office on Violence Against Women.