Annual Appeal – Help us reach our goal!

• DateDecember 7, 2023
• Authorcommunity
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Dear Starting Point Friends,

Thanks to your support, Starting Point has continued to be a fixture in Carroll County for more than 40 years! It’s hard to imagine what our community might have endured without Starting Point’s advocacy for thousands of victims and their children who have since gone on to flourish.

I know that a world without Starting Point is a precarious place, not only from my work as Executive Director, but through my own experience. Not having access to an advocate or resources left me abandoned in a new state, struggling with courts, police, safety, severe trauma, and PTSD. If I had the services like those of Starting Point, I would have been supported, known how to keep myself safe, and had the guidance to make decisions not based on fear but braced with knowledge, resources, and care. I would not have lost all financially and emotionally.

Without Starting Point:

A victim of sexual assault may sink into depression or have suicidal ideation. Victims of sexual assault are ten times more likely to commit suicide than the general population. Starting Point advocates respond 24/7/365 days a year to Carroll County hospitals and walk-in clinics when an incident of sexual assault or domestic violence is reported.

Your donations provide essential aid at these times, including transportation, emergency food and medical supplies, security devices, and much more.

Survivors navigating court alone have less chance of obtaining protection orders, leaving them susceptible to further abuse or worse. Police report an 80% reduction in domestic violence for victims with protective orders.

Your donations mean police can refer survivors to Starting Point advocates during moments of crisis.

A mother and child in imminent danger may end up on the streets or in an overcrowded homeless shelter that offers little more than a few hours a day of respite from the elements and often is shared with offenders and perpetrators. Starting Point provides emergency shelter and advocacy services, including financial literacy, support securing permanent housing, and finding a job.

With your help, we not only reduce the chance of further harm but also provide a continuum of care for moving forward.

In my own journey to becoming a survivor, I eventually found resources and support like those provided by Starting Point. I would not be in the position I am today, quite literally alive, able to share my story, and in a place to make an impact. Please join me in paying it forward with a donation during our annual fall campaign and help us reach our goal of $80,000 by December 31.

With your support, there is a Starting Point, and with a Starting Point, there is hope for those who struggle with abuse.

With Gratitude,

Deborah Weinstein, Executive Director

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