YWCA Sexual Assault Response Center to open in Georgetown
YWCA Delaware Inc. was awarded more than $530,000 to expand the services of its Sexual Assault Response Center to Sussex County by the Delaware Criminal Justice Council.
The competitive award, announced June 20, was made available to YWCA Delaware under the federal Victims of Crime Act-Assistance Program for up to two years. YWCA Delaware’s Sexual Assault Response Center New Castle County office in Newark, recently celebrated its one-year anniversary. SARC is a rape crisis center that provides comprehensive, free and confidential rape crisis services to all sexual assault survivors aged 12 and older and their non-offending family members, friends and partners.
Its services include a 24/7 rape crisis hotline where victims can speak with a sexual assault response advocate. Advocates are also available to assist survivors in need of medical, police and legal accompaniment, supportive telephone counseling, aftercare follow up services, individual and group counseling services and information and referral to vital community services.
“YWCA Delaware SARC is committed to providing healing, hope and empowerment to all individuals whose lives have been impacted by sexual violence. We launched our services to ensure that survivors would have access 24/7 to free and confidential intervention services, but also to the compassion they deserve. In our first year, SARC helped 198 individuals connect to medical, legal, counseling and referral services. We are encouraged by the CJC’s commitment to expanding sexual assault services downstate and know that it will provide the opportunity for many more survivors to receive the help they need,” said Elizabeth McCourt, director, Sexual Assault Response Center.
YWCA Delaware’s Sexual Assault Response Center Sussex County office will be at 20151 Office Circle in Georgetown, and is scheduled to begin offering services to residents in November. Applications for paid and volunteer positions are currently being accepted. For more information, go to www.ywcade.org. For the SARC Helpline, call 1-800-773-8570.
