DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SHELTER

DOVE HOUSE

Dove House is Butler County’s only emergency protective shelter for survivors, dependents & pets fleeing domestic violence and the associated trauma. We are a low barrier shelter. Our services are available to everyone including LGBTQIA+, human trafficking & sexual assault survivors, unverified immigration status, and men.


Services include:

  • 24-hour protective shelter
  • Crisis Hotline
  • Housing Case Management
  • Support and educational groups 


Since 1979, Dove House has been working to provide safety and promote healing to those fleeing domestic violence, one of the most pervasive threats to safety and well-being both nationally and locally.

The Numbers

Within the last year YWCA Hamilton sheltered approximately 195 survivors. Within the last year DH sheltered 195 survivors with 10,182 bed nights in total. Of those families 1% retuned to abuser, 65% of survivors transitioned into additional shelter programs or temporary housing arrangements with relatives or friends, and 34% acquired safe housing.


For the 2024 Fiscal Year Ohio still spends less per capita compared to other neighboring states like Indiana and Kentucky.


Ohio experiences a significant economic loss every year because of intimate partner violence, according to a study commissioned by the Ohio Domestic Violence Network (ODVN). The cost — estimated at nearly $1.2 billion affects all Ohioans, from the direct losses experienced by victims, to lost worker productivity, a cost born by employers.


The largest economic factors were physical health care for victims ($264.8 million annually, or 22.9% of the total cost); loss of life ($239.9 million, or 20.8%); and loss of worker productivity ($227.7 million, or 19.7%)


Those costs ripple out throughout the state with increased expenses for law enforcement and the judicial system; for incarcerating abusers; and for the long-term impact that domestic violence has on the children who witness the violence and are sometimes physically hurt themselves. (ODVN)

One Success At A Time

For more than ten years, Jane (not her name) had been living with an abuser because he was the father of her child. She made several unsuccessful attempts to leave him but it was especially difficult because the apartment was in her name. She grew more fearful and worried because their five-year-old daughter was now in a world where the abuse was escalating. Finally, Jane was able escape to find safety at Dove House. Jane, with her daughter, lived at the shelter, learning how to rebuild her life. She stayed even though she had a long commute to work as she knew that she desperately needed to keep to her job to be able to afford safe housing. Dove House staff and Rapid Rehousing  worked with Jane to locate a housing unit and to help her with the transition. While in our care, Jane reported that her daughter really looked forward to returning to our shelter each evening. Jane explained that being at Dove House was the first time and she and her daughter were able to experience peace!

Proud Member of the Ohio Domestic Violence Network

YWCA Hamilton is a proud member of the Ohio Domestic Violence Network (ODVN), a statewide coalition dedicated to ending domestic violence and supporting survivors. Through this partnership, we join forces with organizations across Ohio to advocate for stronger protections, share resources, and provide comprehensive services that promote safety, healing, and justice for all impacted by domestic violence.


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About Trauma

"Trauma refers to experiences or events that by definition are out of the ordinary in terms of their overwhelming nature. They are more than merely stressful - they are shocking, terrifying, and devastating to the victim, resulting in profoundly upsetting feelings of terror, shame, helplessness, and powerlessness."  (Courtois, 1999)

Did you know?

 

  • Every 2 ½ minutes, someone in the United States is sexually assaulted.
  • One in three women have been a victim of domestic violence.
  • Twenty-five percent of college women have been raped.
  • Seventy percent of cyberstalking victims are female.
  • Forty percent of teenage girls ages 14 to 17 say they know someone their age who has been hit or beaten by a boyfriend.
  • More than 5.7 million youth are estimated to be involved in bullying.
  • Homicide is the leading cause of death for all pregnant women.
  • 18,000 to 20,000 of the victims of human trafficking are trafficked into the United States annually.