My name is Hannah Gottschalk and I serve as the Executive Director of SafeCenter Domestic and Sexual Violence Services of Clinton and Shiawassee Counties. I am a Licensed Master of Social Work (Macro Practice) and have been the ED of SafeCenter since July 2019 but have been involved with SafeCenter since 2011 when I came to work for the agency as an Advocate/Therapist. When I left the organization for another position with a different non-profit agency in 2013, I returned to serve on SafeCenter’s Board of Directors for a period of six years. I guess you could say that SafeCenter has meant a great deal to me throughout the course of my career as a Social Worker.
Most of my career has been spent in the areas of domestic violence, sexual assault, and human trafficking, although I’ve also served in workforce development and general social services arenas as well. My work with SafeCenter was particularly impactful and life-changing for me because I am a secondary survivor of domestic violence, and my work has allowed me to transcend my childhood experience into helping others heal and recover in their own journeys now as an adult.
SafeCenter has existed in the Mid-Michigan area for 38 years; we became a 501(c)3 non-profit agency in 1984. We have two offices – one in downtown St. Johns and one in Owosso, where our Shelter and four on-site Transitional Supportive Housing units are located as well. SafeCenter provides a variety of services to child and adult survivors of domestic and sexual violence, including but not limited to:
· 24-hour Crisis Hotline (available 365 days per year)
· 24-hour Emergency Shelter (available 365 days per year)
· 24-hour Emergency On-Call Response to the hospital, police department, or other safe location (available 365 days per year)
· Advocacy/Supportive Services (Individual and Group)
· Counseling/Therapy
· Legal Advocacy (Court Accompaniment, Personal Protection Orders, Referrals to Legal Services)
· Basic Needs (Food, Clothing, Shelter)
· Information/Referrals
· Transitional Supportive Housing (on-site in Owosso and scattered site in both Counties)
· Community Education and Outreach
· Social and Systems Change Efforts (Task Forces, Coalitions, and Collaborations in both Counties)
One can learn more about SafeCenter via our website: www.thesafecenter.org; on Facebook: www.facebook.com/thesafecenter.org; or by calling us: 989-723-9716 or toll-free at 877-952-7283.
SafeCenter is one of many agencies across the State of Michigan that provides these services to individuals and families who have experienced domestic and sexual violence. Most counties and/or tribal lands have designated service providers that are funded by a combination of federal, state, and local grant dollars, as well as donated dollars, to provide these essential services.
SafeCenter is a member of the Michigan Coalition to End Domestic and Sexual Violence (MCEDSV), which serves as a connection point for many victims who need assistance. They currently operate a Sexual Violence Hotline (855-864-2374) and Domestic Violence Hotline (866-864-2338). To learn more about the Coalition and what they provide, visit their website: https://mcedsv.org.
Many national resources are available for victims and survivors as well and serve as reference points for our organization frequently. They are:
Domestic Violence
National Network to End Domestic Violence: https://nnedv.org/
National Domestic Violence Hotline: https://www.thehotline.org/
National Coalition Against Domestic Violence: https://ncadv.org/
Sexual Assault
Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network and Hotline: https://www.rainn.org/
National Sexual Violence Resource Center: https://www.nsvrc.org/
Teen Dating Violence
Love Is Respect and National Dating Violence Hotline: https://www.loveisrespect.org/
Human Trafficking
National Human Trafficking Hotline: https://humantraffickinghotline.org/
Polaris Project: https://polarisproject.org/
The most important thing I want every victim/survivor to know, personally, is that there are resources out there to help them and that they are not alone. Here at SafeCenter, we believe every person who walks through our door and what they have experienced, or are experiencing currently, matters deeply to us. Safety does exist; hope, healing, and transformation are possible.
If you’d like to connect more with Hannah at SafeCenter, you can do so in the following ways:
Email: hannah@thesafecenter.org
Phone: 989-723-9716
Hannah is also a Certified Coach, providing Leadership and Personal Development Coaching. You can learn more about that here:
Instagram: @fierceandfreecoaching
Facebook: www.facebook.com/fierceandfreecoaching
Wesbite: www.fierceandfreecoaching.com
