Over the last year, House of Ruth Maryland (HRM) has increased the number of domestic violence survivors it has helped by 6 percent from 2021—serving 11,583 adults and children so far. While many such agencies across the country shut down or severely restricted operations during the pandemic, HRM kept services operating at full capacity. Still, it is taking longer for women to reach safety than before the pandemic.
Many of the services HRM provides require staff. Survivors need attorneys, counselors, service coordinators, outreach staff, and group facilitators to help them through the process of escaping intimate partner violence. Without proper staffing, the organization cannot serve as many people.
In addition, many of those served are struggling to achieve financial stability due to rent increases and inflation. As a result of these economic challenges, shelter stays are longer, which again means fewer survivors can find shelter at HRM in a year.
Despite these ongoing challenges, HRM’s Safe Homes program continues to place survivors into housing with support services. A grant from Baltimore County will allow the nonprofit to provide at least 25 additional families with safe homes, bringing the total number of families served by this program to nearly 100.
The Weinberg Foundation provided a $200,000 grant to support this organization.
