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| About
Shelter House, Inc. |
In 1985, the League of Women Voters performed a needs assessment in conjunction with local law enforcement regarding domestic violence support and assistance in Okaloosa and Walton counties. The survey revealed the reluctance of many domestic violence survivors in Walton and Okaloosa counties to enter Favor House in Pensacola (the nearest facility of its kind) because of its distance from jobs and familiar schools for their children. In reaction to this assessment, Shelter House, Inc. was created and the Board of Directors was installed. For the next six years, volunteers and Board Members worked
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Mission Statement
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Supporting
victims of domestic violence by providing services and shelter
while promoting prevention through education and advocacy.
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Vision Statement
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All
relationships violence free.
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to open a shelter in Okaloosa County that would better serve both Okaloosa and Walton county victims. In December of 1991, Shelter House, Inc. signed a lease on a three bedroom, two bath home. On January 27, 1992, the emergency shelter opened its doors to the first of its clients. In
August 2008, we paid off the mortgage.
This year, Shelter House is celebrating 15 years of providing emergency shelter to victims of domestic violence, including the elderly, children and people of all races. Shelter House, Inc. (fin 59-2634092) is the state-certified domestic violence center serving domestic violence victims of Okaloosa and Walton counties in the Florida panhandle.
Shelter House offers a variety of services to clients residing in the confidential shelter and through our outreach program. The shelter staff provide clients with services including advocacy, accompaniment, crisis counseling, 24-hour hotline,
youth program services. Additionally, the shelter staff facilitate
one group counseling session per week. A licensed child play therapist is also available to counsel our young clients who are working through the trauma of witnessing domestic violence.
If the client feels that confidential shelter is not an appropriate option for them, they can access our services through the outreach program. The
four advocates which make up the outreach program provide domestic violence services to clients in outlaying areas of Shelter House’s two-county service area. Services provided include all those available to shelter clients including group counseling sessions in south Okaloosa County and north Walton
County.
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