OSHKOSH (NBC 26) — After 40 years of helping victims, Christine Ann Domestic Abuse Services is moving into a new building twice the size as the current shelter.
- Christine Ann Domestic Abuse Services celebrated its 40th anniversary on Sept 16.
- The new building increases capacity, expands ADA accessibility and allows pets.
- Domestic violence deaths have increased in the state of Wisconsin.
Kaitlyn is an empowerment advocate with Christine Ann Domestic Abuse Services.
She asked not to include her last name to protect client confidentiality.
Kaitlyn works first-hand with victims of domestic violence as they try to leave their abusers.
Working in the current shelter building, Christine Ann Domestic Abuse Services has to turn away over 50 people every year due to capacity issues and limited ADA accessibility.
They also have to turn away anyone with pets, as their current shelter can not accommodate animals.
Kaitlyn says it's difficult to turn someone away once they've asked for help.
“When people get turned away, I think sometimes it deters folks from wanting to try again," she says. "It's just hard.”
On Oct. 8, the organization officially moves into the new building, across from the current shelter on Algoma Blvd.
“This building essentially alleviates all of our current struggles that we have," Alicia Wenger, executive director of Christine Ann Domestic Abuse Services, says.
The current building has 10 units totally 37 beds. Only three of the units are ADA accessible, which is particularly difficult for pregnant women, according to Wenger.
The current space does not allow pets and only has one room for large families.
Kaitlyn says she has had many clients who do not want to leave their pets.
"It's hard as an advocate to be like we've gotten this far safety planning, and we're ready, and you're ready to make that next step, but we can't go without the pet," she says.
Now that the new space allows pets, Kaitlyn says it will be much easier to get victims into the shelter quickly.
"So they can actually leave and safely come here with their pet and know that they're going to be safe, their pet's going to be safe, and they'll be able to have a safe place to sleep for the night, pets included," she says.
The new building also offers an additional 11 units of transitional, long term housing.
"They'll work hand in hand with the case manager to really focus on next steps, financial literacy, prepare for full independence," Wenger says.
Emily James, development manager for Christine Ann Domestic Abuse Services, says they've seen an increase in their services since COVID.
"We've seen an increase in demand for services, and unfortunately, an increase of violence is what's propelling that," she says. "So we've seen a drastic increase in things like stalking, strangulation, even homicide."
The 2022 Wisconsin Domestic Violence Homicide Report shows domestic violence deaths have increased steadily since 2018, reaching 68 in 2022.
The report also measures total deaths linked to domestic violence, which includes perpetrator deaths from suicide or law enforcement.
The total deaths linked to domestic violence in 2022 was 96, up from 80 in 2021.
James hopes the new building will help address some of the growing need.
Just really thinking about potentially being in this space for the next 40 years or even longer, and being able to serve survivors in new and better ways, because we'll have more space to do that is really exciting," she says.
The organization is hosting community guided tours every hour on Thursday, Sept. 19 and will be hosting a ribbon cutting at 4 pm.
The organization also accepts donations to help with the transition. More information can be found on their website.
