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Hope Resource Centre starts new program

The Hope Resource Centre is introducing a new tool to help families in the Westlock are deal with family violence, and is seeking funding to keep up its work.

The Hope Resource Centre is introducing a new tool to help families in the Westlock are deal with family violence, and is seeking funding to keep up its work.

Heidi Magus, manager of the centre, and Linda West, who sits on the board, made a presentation to Westlock town council at its March 12 meeting outlining their past successes, future plans, and of course the ongoing need for funding.

The new program planned is called ‘Creating Change for Healthy Relationships,’ and is set to begin in the area at the end of the month. It is a therapeutic treatment program aimed at both men and women who have been involved in domestic violence.

“We have had anger management in the past, and actually this treatment program isn’t about anger management it’s about managing the family violence issue, so it is different,” West said. “The anger management is good, and we needed more which is why we’ve gone for this program.”

The program has been running in locations in the United States for 25 years, and has been running closer to home in Drayton Valley for 10.

The Hope Resource Centre and the organization that runs it, the Westlock Women’s Association, have partnered with similar agencies in Barrhead and Athabasca to bring this program to the area.

Magus said what is different about the program in this area, which has not necessarily been done in other locations, is adding the women’s component.

“If both parties are not changing in the same way, you’re hitting a wall again,” she said. “We’ve heard it over and over and over again: it takes two to tango.”

The program may provide benefit to the area, but without long-term funding it could be short-lived.

“Currently we have grants from the Status of Women, the federal government, as well as Alberta Justice,” West said. “But they are year-to-year funding. They are grants and at this point we don’t have any core funding.”

Magus said the process of securing grant funding is always easier when there is support from local municipalities.

Westlock County donated $10,000 last year and at its March 13 meeting passed a motion to donate the same a mount this year. Magus asked town council to consider a similar contribution.

While council made no promises, mayor Bruce Lennon suggested a formal letter requesting the funding would be the first step.

“We haven’t finalized our budget, although we’ve come a long way,” he said. “The sooner you can get that in to us the better.”

Magus and West also provide council with an update on how many people the centre has served since it opened in 2009. There were 13 clients in 2009, 48 in 2010, 39 in 2011 and there have already been 16 in 2012 — a 200 per cent increase over the same time period last year.

Of those clients, 58 have come because of physical abuse, 36 because of emotional abuse, nine because of elder abuse, eight because of sexual abuse and there have also been four teenagers served.

The centre has also engaged in a variety of outreach work, including the ‘Hands Are Not For Hitting’ program with Grade 2 students in town — something Magus said is having a profound impact.

“It’s always interesting to hear some of the things that come out of a child’s mouth, because when we ask the question, ‘What is violence,’ it’s amazing what they tell us,” she said. “It is just a carbon copy from what they see at home, what they see on the TV, what they see in video games and what they hear on the playground. There is a lot of violence in there and at the Grade 2 level they understand what it is.”

The centre also recently sponsored a presentation from Bill Belsey, a teacher from Cochrane and creator of bullying.org, a website dedicated to ending bullying in schools. He presented to both St. Mary and R.F. Staples students, and Magus said the presentation was quite successful.

“The schools are inviting us to bring more speakers,” she added.

For more information about the Hope Resource Centre or the Westlock Women’s Association, visit their office in downtown Westlock or phone 780-349-6111.

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