According to a National Crime Victimization Survey, every 68 seconds someone in our country is sexually assaulted with 90% of victims being women. The majority of sexual assaults occur at or near the victim's home.
It can be hard for survivors of sexual assault to find places where they feel safe, respected and loved. Starting this week, the Hope & Healing Survivor Resource Center is rolling out new support groups for women hoping to remind them that they are not alone.
Victim Advocate for the Summit County Court System and sexual assault survivor, Kayla Cash speaks to the need for support groups.
"Looking back on it now, I know that that's what I needed to survive. I needed community, I needed support. And a lot of survivors don't have that."
The survivor support groups are a collaboration between Hope & Healing Survivor Resource Center and Healing Hearts Counseling and Consultation Services.
"That validation in that affirmation that what happened to them was not their fault is essential to the trauma recovery process, as well as having supportive professionals and people in their lives," said the Chief Program Officer for the Hope & Healing Survivor Resource Center, Ashley Kline.
The weekly series of survivor support groups in Summit County will provide a non-judgmental environment for survivors to call home. And although trauma is universal, there will be a centralized support group for Black and Brown survivors.
"There hasn't always been the space where people felt like they could come and be safe and not be judged or not have to explain their culture and their community and their dialect first before they could actually get the help that they needed," said the Founder and Executive Director for Healing Hearts Counseling and Consultation, Lisa McCarney.
The first survivor support group starts tonight. The healing hearts support group for Black and African-American survivors starts this Wednesday. You can register for either session by sending an email to support@hope-healing.org.
The Rape Crisis Center of Summit & Medina Counties Hotline is available 24/7 at 330-434-7273.
The National Sexual Assault Hotline is also available 24/7 at 1-800-656-4673.
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