Resources for Sexual Assault Victims

In the wake of recent news stories involving sexual assault, many women and men have found themselves dealing with the pain of their own experiences of being sexually assaulted.

Knowing that there are members of our church and community who have likely been affected by sexual assault, we wanted to provide a few resources for anyone who may need to seek help now or in the future.

RAINN (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network) is the nation's largest anti-sexual violence organization. RAINN created and operates the National Sexual Assault Hotline (800.656.HOPE, or online at www.rainn.org) in partnership with more than 1,000 local sexual assault service providers across the country and operates the DoD Safe Helpline for the Department of Defense.

The Center for Women and Families is a local agency that provides an array of services to sexual assault victims/survivors and they are all free and extremely confidential. You can call the Crisis Line 24/7 at 502.581.7222 or 1-800-237-2331 and the person will talk with and direct you to the right service.

The Center also provides an open support group that meets the first Tuesday of every month from 5-6 pm and every third Saturday from 11 am-12 pm. It's a walk in group, and all they ask is that if it's your first time that you arrive 30 minutes early to meet with the facilitator and complete some paper work.

If you have any questions about the Center for Women and families, you can contact First Christian Church member Elizabeth Wessels-Martin, who is the President and CEO of the Center for Women and Families. You can also visit them online at www.thecenteronline.org

Kentucky Psychological Association is a professional association of psychologist in Kentucky. If you are looking for private counseling they can help you find a local clinician within your geographical area who may have expertise in trauma, sexual assault, and sexual harassment. You can find out more information by visiting their service locator.

As always, you can also reach out to your church staff for support. While we are not professional service providers in the area of sexual assault, we can help you connect with any resources you might need and provide pastoral care for the journey.

Regardless of where you stand on the political issues that have brought recent attention and focus to the issue of sexual assault, we hope that you will join us in seeking to provide supportive care for survivors.

At First Christian Church, we seek to be a movement for wholeness in a fragmented world.