“Lying in a hospital bed with chipped and fractured vertebrae, ‘Fred’ realized for the first time in his life that he’s a victim of abuse. After a week in hospitals, Fred, whose real name is not being used to protect his identity, moved into an emergency shelter at the Center for Prevention of Abuse and became the first adult male to stay in the temporary housing offered to those fleeing domestic violence, sexual assault and elder abuse. For Fred, abuse came at the hands of one of his children, now a grown adult living with his parents. Outbursts of anger had been an issue in the family for a long time, he recalled in a meeting room inside the center, but the pattern of violence continued to escalate until the day Fred found himself flung across the room of his home, his spine crashing into a table.”
Excerpt from an article in the Peoria Journal Star.
Fred is one of far too many elderly victims. One in six seniors have experienced some sort of abuse in the past year, typically at the hands of someone they know, love and trust. Seniors who experience even modest abuse increase their risk of death by 300%. Fred, and others like him, are the reason that the Center for Prevention of Abuse (CFPA) is here. The impact this agency provides is overwhelmingly positive, and it is big.
The Center for Prevention of Abuse is a pioneer in providing services to victims of violence. CFPA has grown from a single rape crisis hotline that started in 1975 to a highly respected statewide leader in working to end abuse and break the cycle of generational violence. CFPA is the only agency in the entire state sanctioned to provide its combined services of Domestic Violence, Sexual Abuse/Assault, Human Trafficking, Adult Protective Services, and Prevention Education under one roof. CFPA operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year, and all victim services are free and confidential. CFPA is a high impact human service organization working toward safe and more peaceful communities.
Currently, CFPA serves nearly 6,000 survivors of interpersonal violence each year. We also work holistically to try to stop abuse before it starts. The agency’s prevention education efforts are unprecedented, substantial, and successful. Last year, CFPA’s prevention education team reached 41,599 students in 143 schools and other educational settings in the tri-county area. Teaching and modeling healthy relationships, empathy, peaceful conflict resolution, emphasizing that safety matters.
It is hard to grasp, but what if CFPA could only serve a fraction of the people we serve now. What if we were forced to care for only 78% of the roughly 6,000 survivors we currently see: people of all ages, many of whom have endured unspeakable trauma and need specialized care. Take away 22% and the number of cared-for survivors shrinks dramatically to about 4,600, leaving the others without care, or on a lengthy waiting list, and so on. What if we had to excuse more than 19,000 students from the classrooms where CFPA’s prevention efforts are underway, eliminating young people from those critical lessons on body safety and social and emotional learning. Removing 22% of young people amounts to a significant loss; a loss of safety, a loss of knowledge, a loss of healing, a loss of hope, and a loss of peace for so many.
Over the last month, the federal funding landscape has undergone significant changes that present challenges and create tidal waves of uncertainty for many nonprofits that depend on grants to provide essential services. On January 27, 2025, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issued Memorandum M-25-13, instructing federal agencies to pause all disbursements of federal financial assistance, affecting thousands upon thousands of programs. Although the memorandum was officially withdrawn on January 29, some agencies continued to withhold funds, leading to delays and uncertainty for nonprofits who have been thoroughly vetted and fairly awarded federal grants, leaving the future of all federal funding uncertain at best.
The Center for Prevention of Abuse receives remarkable grassroots support that we could certainly not do without. Grassroots support that comes from people like you, adopting ducks $5 at a time for CFPA’s annual Duck Race, and donating even more when you can. The premise of cutting 22% of our clients is symbolic of the enormity of that number. What is noteworthy is that 22% of the agency’s annual budget comes from the federal government, and it funds crucial programs like Adult Protective Services (APS), one of several departments that cared for Fred and other seniors as well as those living with disabilities who are affected by abuse, programming that gives people a safe place to lay their head at night in one of CFPA’s two emergency shelters, others assisting victims of sexual violence funded through the Violence Against Women’s Act, CFPA’s prevention efforts and so, so much more.
As a high impact, cost effective human service organization, the Center for Prevention of Abuse would never deny the idea of government at any level, or reputable businesses including agencies like ours, the opportunity to review costs to ensure that precious funding is handled well, and return on investment is what it should be. At CFPA we do this regularly. I am thankful CFPA is prepared for emergencies and well-practiced in managing costs with 94% of every dollar going directly to client care with full transparency and accountability. CFPA has long been highly respected and quite candidly, we are well versed in crisis intervention and capable of handling difficult circumstances. However, a dense fog of uncertainty has rolled in and if there is one thing nonprofit business leaders and other economic agents abhor, it is uncertainty.
“‘Instead of calling this a shelter, I’d call it a safe house,’ he said. ‘As soon as you walk through those doors, you feel very secure, very safe.’ At 68, Fred can be classified not just as a victim of domestic violence, but of elder abuse, a demographic that has shown increased need. When he arrived at the hospital for treatment of his injuries, hospital staff, as mandated reporters of elder abuse, flagged his case for review. A state investigator and social worker from the hospital arranged for his transport to (the Center for Prevention of Abuse’s) Peoria shelter.”
This agency prides itself on being the exact opposite of “uncertain” for those subjected to abuse. The Center for Prevention of Abuse and the services our team offers are essential to the well-being of Fred, other survivors, and the communities where we provide help. We are resilient, and we intend to serve and serve mightily with you as our partners in the peaceful work done all day every day, with a watchful eye on our important funding partners in Washington, DC.
