MYRTLE BEACH, SC (WBTW) – The Family Justice Center of Horry and Georgetown Counties received a $435,000 grant to continue providing support to victims of domestic abuse.
Vicki Bourus with the Family Justice Center said there about 35,000 reports in South Carolina each year of domestic violence. Despite the number of reports and the fact that South Carolina ranks 5th in the nation for women killed by men, the Family Justice Center has struggled to keep the Myrtle Beach office open.
Funding to keep the Myrtle Beach center open has not been consistent, but facility leaders hope the new grant will allow them to keep offering services like crisis intervention, counseling, filing court documents, or finding victims a safe place to stay.
“Getting that office opened and staffed has allowed social services people, counselors, and law enforcement officers to know where to bring the victims to get that immediate care that they need,” explains Bourus.
The Victim of Crime Act grant is a federal grant that comes from fees or fines paid by criminals ordered to pay a certain amount of cash. Bourus said because of grants like this, the Family Justice Center can take more steps to ending the cycle of domestic violence.
“We know that children that grow up in violent homes often grow up to repeat that behavior,” said Bourus. “Therefore, the community is affected negatively by those people coming into the population that have grown up in violence and often end up perpetrating violence.”
