Sojourner Family Peace Center Awarded $20K Grant Supporting Victims and Survivors of Domestic Violence

Milwaukee’s Sojourner Family Center was recently awarded a $20,000 grant from HopeLine® from Verizon as part of a financial pledge made through “Because Voices Have Power,” a social media campaign that encouraged the public to share messages of hope to domestic violence victims and survivors through their social channels.

For every message of hope using the hashtag #VoicesHavePower, Verizon donated $3 toward domestic violence prevention and awareness programs and initiatives. The campaign was supported by consumers and domestic violence organizations across the country and garnered more than 118,000 messages of hope since its launch over the summer.

The donation made to Sojourner Family Peace Center will support their education and training programs promoting self-efficacy and economic freedom for the 9,500 victims and survivors the organization serves.

"Verizon's ‘Because Voices Have Power’ campaign was a powerful effort,” said Carmen Pitre, executive director, Sojourner Family Peace Center. “We were pleased to participate and believe that these types of actions are essential and necessary to end the cycle of domestic violence. This campaign in particular gave support, courage and hope to those who have been impacted by domestic violence – reminding them that they matter and that they have the power to make positive changes for themselves and their families.”

Sojourner Family Peace Center has served the community of Milwaukee since 1975. The Center’s primary goals are to ensure the safety of victims of family violence and to provide a pathway out of violence for victims and abusers through opportunities to make positive and lasting changes for themselves and their children. It provides an array of support aimed at helping families affected by domestic violence achieve safety, justice and well-being.

Through HopeLine, Verizon has donated more than 180,000 phones to survivors of domestic violence, and awarded more than $21 million in cash grants to its partner agencies. The program collects no-longer-used wireless phones, batteries, chargers and accessories to benefit victims and survivors of domestic violence. To learn more about the HopeLine program and how you can get involved, visit http://www.verizonwireless.com/hopeline.