Domestic Violence Services
Does your partner:
Push or hit you, or restrain you from leaving?…Physical Abuse
Call you names and put you down?…Verbal Abuse
Demand control over your money?…Financial Abuse
Make you feel like you are crazy?…Mental Abuse
Keep you isolated from family and friends?…Emotional Abuse
Pressure you into sex or unwanted sexual behaviors?…Sexual Abuse
There are many different forms of abuse. If you answered YES to any of these questions, you may be a survivor of domestic violence.
Pinnacle Community Services has been providing a broad range of domestic violence services for over thirty years. We provide services to victims of abuse and their children, as well as educational groups for partners who are abusive. Our goal is to work with the whole family to STOP domestic violence. Whether you are in need of emergency shelter or counseling, we are ready to answer your call. The frequency and severity of the violence may vary dramatically, but the one constant component of domestic violence is one partner’s consistent efforts to maintain power and control over the other.
24/7 Confidential DV Hotline 716-299-0909
Passage House Shelter
Passage House Shelter, a fifteen-bed domestic violence shelter, serving Niagara Falls, North Tonawanda and Niagara County, provides free emergency shelter in a confidential location to individuals who are victims of domestic violence and their children. The shelter is staffed 24/7 and someone is available to respond to the needs of victims of domestic violence and their children any time of the day or night.
The Passage Program provides crisis intervention and counseling services to victims of domestic violence and their children in a safe, secure, comfortable, home-like setting, so that the healing process can begin. If you are living in an abusive relationship call 716-299-0909 for help today. Because NO ONE deserves to be abused!
Stay where you are wanted and safe – Passage House
24/7 Confidential DV Hotline 716-299-0909
DV Counseling & Support Groups
Individual DV Counseling
We understand that sometimes individuals feel that they cannot leave an abusive situation, but that they do need support and education about domestic violence, personal safety, and healthy relationships. The program provides DV Counseling Services to empower victims of domestic violence to feel more in control of their lives and their choices; and most importantly, to make choices that will keep them and their children safe. Through one-on-one counseling they will set goals; work toward a greater understanding of domestic violence including personal safety, self-esteem, boundaries and healthy relationships; and will begin to take the steps they choose in order to remain safe whether they remain in the relationship or decide to leave an abusive relationship.
Domestic Violence Counseling Services are provided free to individuals in Niagara County who have experienced abuse, but who are not currently receiving shelter services. Victims of domestic violence can receive counseling services by appointment in their homes, at our main office, or in another location where they feel safe.
For more information or to schedule an appointment with the DV Counselor call 716-285-6984.
Support Groups
In addition to individual domestic violence counseling, support groups are offered for individuals who have experienced abusive relationships. It is extremely important that they realize that they are not alone in their struggles. The Support Groups provide a safe place to learn from each other and to share and support each other in ways that help them grow and heal from an abusive relationship.
We also offer Children’s Support Groups for children who have witnessed domestic violence AND whose parent is supportive and engaged in counseling as well. Children’s groups are held at the same time as the adult groups for the convenience of the families.
For more information about how you can participate in a DV Support Group call the Passage House DV Services at 716-285-6984
Community Advocacy Project (CAP)
The Community Advocacy Project has a twofold purpose:
- To ensure that victims of abuse and their families are getting access to the community resources necessary for them to secure the safety and well-being of their families as they build a future free from abuse.
- To educate the community at large about the dynamics of domestic violence and to encourage other community agencies to provide services to victims and their children.
The CAP Coordinator will meet with the DV victim and assess their individual needs and the needs of their family. This service is client-driven with the CAP Team members serving as navigators for the victim and their family in the community. The CAP Team includes the Coordinator and trained interns from local universities.
The Community Advocacy Project provides an intensive and intentional working relationship, partnering CAP team members and abuse victims for up to ten weeks. During this time, the CAP team will not only refer and assist the victim in obtaining needed resources but also teach positive skills and model behaviors which will assist them in continuing safe and healthy living beyond the Intervention.
If you have been abused by your partner and would like to learn more about the Community Advocacy Project or you would like to participate in the project, call the CAP Coordinator at 716-285-6984.
Women as Offenders Group
A 16-week Educational Group is available for women who are abusive in their intimate relationships. Women are referred by the courts, Niagara County DSS, community agencies or may join the group as self-referrals. The group focuses on taking personal accountability for behavior, learning ways to have healthy relationships, as well as learning techniques to handle stress, anger, and other emotions.
The underlying philosophy of the group is that violent behavior is learned and that individuals choose to use violence. Therefore they can learn new and alternative ways to live and to behave in order to build healthy relationships in the future.
Call 716-285-6984 for more information about the Women as Offenders group.
Niagara County Jail DV Groups
Pathways (Personal Accountability Toward Healthy Ways) is an education program, provided in a group setting, for men and women in the Niagara County Jail who are physically and/or psychologically abusive in their intimate relationships. Through an emphasis on personal responsibility, participants examine their use of abusive behaviors and the beliefs which underlie them. Men and women in the groups are given the opportunity to learn and to practice new interpersonal skills for developing more equitable and respectful relationships.
The curriculum includes the following topics:
- Communication Skills
- Anger Management
- Partnership
- Trust and Support
- Alternative to Violence
- Respect
- Parenting Issues
Some Helpful Web Links
National Coalition Against Domestic Violence www.ncadv.org
National Center on Domestic and Sexual Violence www.ncdsv.org
NYS Coalition Against Domestic Violence www.nyscadv.org
National Teen Dating Abuse Hotline www.loveisrespect.org
Office for the Prevention of Domestic Violence www.opdv.ny.gov
National Online Resource Center on Violence Against Women www.vawnet.org
Domestic Shelters & Resource Library www.domesticshelters.org
24/7 DOMESTIC VIOLENCE HOTLINE
716-299-0909
24/7 RUNAWAY YOUTH HOTLINE
716-285-7125
