24 Facts

To celebrate the 24 hours that SafeHouse Center is open per day, Staff compiled their favorite facts about SafeHouse Center for the 2015 Giving Tuesday event. Although Giving Tuesday is long over, our services for survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence are not. As we remain open every single hour of every single day, herewith are our 24 favorite facts about SafeHouse Center!

1. In March of 1978, SafeHouse Center opened its doors in a renovated old home in rural southeastern Washtenaw County.
2. In 1992, Washtenaw County voters approved a millage to fund a new, publicly accessible building with state-of-the-art security, offices and a 50-bed shelter. We are still there today.
3. The average length of a stay at SafeHouse Center is 30 days.
4. When in shelter, advocates work with survivors to determine goals and set a plan for how to reach them. Common goals include finding safe and affordable housing, employment, childcare and reliable transportation.
5. The children’s program completes intakes, ongoing one-on-one and family support, assists in school enrollment, and provides area agency referrals.
6. 6 days a week, the children’s program provides playroom for both children within our shelter and non-residential children when their parent participates in a support group.
7. Thus far, this year our Teen Voice Peer Education group has given 13 presentations regarding teen dating violence and sexual assault at area schools.
8. We offer 4 support groups: a group for survivors of sexual assault, a group for survivors of domestic violence, a Spanish-language group for survivors of domestic violence, and a group for the friends and family of survivors.
9. SafeHouse Center provides services to everyone of ALL gender identities and sexual orientations.
10. Last year, our legal advocates accompanied more than 1,000 survivors to court.
11. Our shelter contains 50 standard beds, plus cribs and and a few roll-away beds.
12. We serve over 5,500 survivors and their children each year.
13. More than 60% of our shelter residents are children.
14. Every service SafeHouse Center provides is free-of-charge to the survivor and their family.
15. Last year, our shelter provided 7,462 nights of safety to survivors and their families.
16. When they come to shelter, children can attend their home school, or enroll in Ann Arbor schools. Either way, school buses must pick our kids up first, and drop them off last.
17. Last year we provided 7,896 meals to our residents free-of-charge.
18. Last year our counselors provided 1,300 hours of free counseling to survivors.
19. The word SAFE in SafeHouse stands for Shelter Available for Emergencies.
20. Last year our HelpLine answered more than 3,100 crisis calls.
21. Last year our response teams assisted more than 700 survivors in hospitals, homes and police stations immediately after an assault.
22. Our legal advocates support survivors by accompanying them to court proceedings and legal meetings, and helping them file personal protection orders.
23. Someone is always on-call at SafeHouse Center. 365 days a year, 7 days a week, 24 hours a day. Hope is always available.
24. Last year, SafeHouse Center gave over $18,000 in Fresh Start Funds to survivors to help them pay expenses related to creating an independent life away from their abuser.

To continue providing these life-saving services to survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence, we need your support.

Thank you for helping us continue to be a beacon of hope in our community.