Domestic Violence Program
News Flash: Doorways Breaks Ground on Pets and Women's Shelters (PAWS)™ program! Click here to find out more.
If you need immediate assistance or resources, please click here.
Doorways Domestic Violence Program is more than just a place to find shelter from violence. We provide a spectrum of life-saving, supportive, and educational services to help women and children leave behind a life of domestic violence and begin a new life of stability, dignity and self-sufficiency.
The Safehouse is a nurturing confidential and secure 11-bed home in which all residents—women and children—receive comprehensive services to help them heal and recover from trauma and move their lives forward from abuse toward security, dignity and self-sufficiency.
In the past year, Doorways achieved the following results:
• Provided 97 women and children with shelter from violence for 3,326 bed nights, with most women and families staying for an average of 4 months.
• Provided 460 individual counseling, life skills development, and goal planning sessions and approximately 3,000 referrals for additional services from local providers.
• Helped over 90% of women who accessed the Safehouse to free themselves from the cycle of violence and avoid returning from their abusive partner.
• Improved the safety and comfort of the Safehouse through extensive renovations with support from Home Aid of Northern Virginia.
Beyond the Safehouse, Doorways’ Domestic Violence Program expanded its support to victims by way of the new Court Advocacy Companionship Program where our bi-lingual staff and volunteers helped 464 survivors navigate the legal system to protect themselves and their children. Over 900 hours of volunteer time was garnered to further our capacity to meet these survivor’s vital legal support needs.
With education being the key to prevention, Doorways
• Provided over 589 callers with crisis counseling, support, and resources through our 24-hour Domestic Violence Hotline.
• Reached over 140,000 individuals through community education and outreach about preventing and ending domestic violence and homelessness.
• Assisted 84 adults and children (in 24 families) in finding permanent housing and becoming more stable through our HomeStart Supportive Housing Program.
• Provided 3 sessions of 42-hour Domestic Violence Training to thoroughly educate nearly 100 volunteers, interns and staff.
For stories about client successes, click here.
24-Hour Hotline
Each year the Doorways for Women and Families Domestic Violence Program offers 24-hour hotline services to approximately 600-700 callers impacted by domestic violence. Doorways staff are available 365 days a year to provide comprehensive information for local resources, referrals, and safety planning. This vital information assists callers to become more knowledgeable about the dynamics of domestic violence and to learn about resources that are available to them in the community. As a first priority, the Hotline Program ensures that callers in immediate danger are provided with crisis intervention and strategies to assist them in becoming safe. The hotline is also a gateway to the Doorways Safehouse for women and families who are fleeing imminent danger.
The Doorways domestic violence hotline number is 703-237-0881.
Safehouse
For a virtual tour of the Safehouse, please click here.
Every year, the Safehouse Program gives 80-100 women and children the safe haven needed in order to heal from the trauma they have been experiencing. All adults receive individual weekly support from a Masters-level social worker and every resident participates in a Family Service Assessment. This assessment creates the foundation for goal planning and services, which include emotional support, employment assistance, parenting education, financial planning, education enhancement, credit repair, and the creation of a plan to transition clients to self-sufficient housing. The children who live at the Doorways Safehouse also receive their own specialized services that support their parents with school enrollment, wellness checkups, emotional health, developmental assessments, tutoring assistance, and access to recreational activities. Moreover, all Safehouse residents engage in the weekly in-house support group that focuses on the healing process and recovery from unhealthy relationships. This group incorporates interpersonal skill building, healthy relationship modeling, and peaceful conflict resolution education.
Court Advocacy
The Domestic Violence Program includes a Court Advocacy and Companionship Program. This critical program promotes and improves our system of justice by providing a bilingual (Spanish-English) Court Advocate with an office at the Arlington County Courthouse to assist survivors of domestic violence and their families. For these people, Doorways provides education about the legal system, companionship during the petition and court hearings processes, and extensive safety planning for anyone impacted by family violence. By being accessible to the public, and serving men, women, and children, we have been able to reach additional underserved populations in Arlington, particularly those who previously have not called the hotline or participated in the Safehouse Program.
The Court Advocate provides any or all of the following services:
- Companionship and Advocacy
- Bilingual Support (English / Spanish)
- Assistance in filing for protection orders
- Accompaniment to civil court hearings and assistance throughout the court process
- Explanations regarding the court process and judgments
- Referrals to attorneys, victim assistance providers, crisis intervention programs, etc.
- Safety planning strategies
- Emergency 911 cell phones
- Assistance in filing for other civil petitions, such as custody and child support Contact Information
If you have any questions regarding protection orders or accessing other court services, please contact Jamie Friedman, Court Advocate, Monday-Friday 8:30am-4:30pm (based on the courthouse schedule) at 703-244-5165.
Domestic Violence as an Issue in our Community
Domestic Violence is an issue that affects thousands of families across the country. Doorways seeks to address this problem in Arlington by not just providing support services to families living in violence but also by focusing agency efforts on community advocacy. For more information on Doorways community advocacy efforts please click here.
In addition, Doorways also provides education to the community about how the issue affects adults and children and how one can support a friend, co-worker or loved one in crisis. Click below for more information.