To champion the efforts of the Women’s Resource Center to End Domestic Violence (WRCDV) and in honor of October being Domestic Violence Awareness Month, DeKalb County’s Super District 7 Commissioner Lorraine Cochran-Johnson has given the organization a $50,000 grant to be used for emergency and long-term housing for survivors of domestic violence.

 In 2022, DeKalb County-based WRCDV provided 47 families, which included 64 children, with emergency housing in its safe house, provided 17 families with transitional housing assistance and helped 20 families flee Atlanta for their safety. Another 46 families received rapid rehousing assistance and 53 families were given emergency hotel stays when the safe house was full. This grant will go towards assisting more families with safe housing opportunities as they escape from their abusers.

Commissioner Cochran-Johnson hosts the podcast, The Weekly Chat, and Jean Douglas, the Executive Director of WRCDV, was on the Oct. 20 episode to share the organization’s history in DeKalb County and how they are helping survivors of domestic violence and their families begin new lives in safety.

WRCDV hosted its 32nd annual Candlelight Vigil in Decatur Square last Thursday, Oct. 19, at 7 p.m.. During the event,  the names of all of those in the state of Georgia who have lost their lives in domestic violence homicides during the past year were read. In 2022, 212 lives were lost to domestic violence, which was a 49% increase over the number of names read the previous year, exemplifying just how important this grant is in helping victims find safe housing.

“We’ve seen a dramatic increase in the need for our housing services over the past year,” shared Jean Douglas, executive director of Women’s Resource Center. “While we support survivors throughout metro Atlanta, we were founded with seed funding from DeKalb County, who recognized the urgent need for services for our community. Commissioner Cochran-Johnson’s generous grant highlights the continued support of DeKalb County and County leaders’ commitment to our work to end domestic violence and support our neighbors who are impacted by abuse.”

History of WRC

In June of 1985, Gwendolyn Ann Turnbough, mother of renowned poet Natasha Tretheway, was working with the DeKalb County District Attorney to protect herself from an abusive ex-husband. Upon his release from jail, her former husband immediately tracked her down. One morning as she was leaving for work, he shot and killed her in the presence of their eleven-year-old son. That same month, Commissioner Sherry Schulman established the DeKalb County Domestic Violence Task Force to investigate the issue of domestic violence in DeKalb County. After several months of study, the Task Force determined a need for additional domestic violence resources, system changes, and a greater emphasis on community education. To meet that need, the county granted $10,000 to create a victim service agency and the Women’s Resource Center was born.