For the fifth year, Sleep Experts is holding the "Share The Warmth" blanket drive, benefiting The Family Place, a Dallas-based shelter working to end the epidemic of family violence.
The two-week campaign hopes to collect new or gently-used blankets for use in The Family Place's emergency lodging as well as their transitional housing program.
"By donating new or gently used blankets, healthy families can be a part of the solution to stop family violence by sharing the gift of comfort and warmth with those who are struggling to rebuild their lives," said Christine Cook, president of Sleep Experts. "We hope that 'Share The Warmth' will inspire people to get rid of an extra blanket or purchase a new one to help someone in need."
The Family Place is the largest family violence service provider in the Dallas area, reaching out to thousands of victims of family violence each year with award-winning programs that keep women and children safe.
On any given day, there are an average of 75 people staying in The Family Place's emergency shelter, with another 30 women and 50 - 60 children staying in their Transitional Housing program. The Family Place not only helps to protect victims from abuse, but gives them an opportunity to make a fresh start with housing placement and counseling programs.
In addition, donations of any sort are encouraged during the drive - sixty percent of The Family Place's annual funding comes from donations, and as little as $1.00 makes a difference in meeting that goal.
"If people have any other household items -- becauase we are providing anything a woman might need to start her life over -- we'll take pots and pans, dishes, baby beds and strollers. Anything you might need to startt your life over, we'll always accept those in donation," said Paige Flink, the director of The Family Place.
Family Violence: an Epidemic in Our Community and Our Country
According to the Texas Health and Human Services Commission, an estimated 265,090 people in DallasCounty (11.4% of the population) are victims of domestic violence.
The January 2007 Homeless Count found 5,163 people living on Dallas streets or in shelters, including 1,139 children. For the second year in a row, women and children made up over half of the homeless population (52%). Domestic abuse/family problems were listed as the reasons for homelessness by 24% of the population.
According to WomenKind, Inc., seventy percent of the children of abused women are also physically abused, and twenty percent are sexually abused. The majority of abusive men were either abused as children or witnessed their mothers being abused.
The Surgeon General’s Workshop on Violence and Public Health reports that domestic violence is the number one cause of injury to women in the United States—more than rapes, muggings and auto accidents combined.
According to the FBI, a woman is beaten in this country every 15 seconds.
Sam Houston University Department of Criminal Justice finds that in one out of every three relationships, some type of domestic violence occurs. Nationally, domestic violence kills over 3,000 women each year.
Every year domestic violence results in almost 100,000 days of hospitalization, almost 30,000 emergency room visits and almost 40,000 visits to a physician according to WomenKind, Inc.
The National Institute of Justice reports that domestic violence accounts for 15% of the total number of all crimes reported.
The American Medical Association reports that family violence costs the nation from $5 to $10 billion annually in medical expenses, police and court costs, shelter and foster care, sick leave and absenteeism.
E-Mail Story
Print Story
