When most people hear WomenShelter, they think of an emergency shelter where women (and now men) fleeing from a dangerous domestic violence situation can take refuge.<\/p>\n
That is indeed an important part of serving victims of abuse, as is the 24-hour hotline for emergencies. Both can be literally lifesaving.<\/p>\n
But the bulk of services rendered at WomenShelter Long Beach are in the calmer setting of the Domestic Violence Resource Center. This is where counseling sessions \u2013 both one-on-one and group \u2013 take place. It\u2019s where referrals for social services, health care or legal help are arranged.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s also where most of the gift cards collected in the annual Gazette Gift Card Drive are distributed to those in need. More about that in a bit. First, let\u2019s learn about the Resource Center and what goes on there.<\/p>\n
All of these services are completely free of charge. Confidentiality is a top priority. And counseling sessions are tailored to handle specific situations and demographics.<\/p>\n
There are supportive services for children and youth victims of domestic violence, up to and including peer counseling for teen dating violence victims. The small WomenShelter counseling staff \u2013 three when fully staffed, plus a supervisor \u2013 spend most of their time with adults.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe usually start with individual counseling,\u201d Maria Perez, the lead case manager, said. \u201cIt is counseling, not therapy. We don\u2019t do therapy because we\u2019re not therapists. And we facilitate the groups.\u201d<\/p>\n
Most of the clients \u2013 and they are clients, not victims \u2013 are women, often with children. But WomenShelter is seeing an increase in men seeking help, Perez said. There is an LGBTQ+ support group, and a co-ed group started recently.<\/p>\n
\u201cJust like the women, the men come in acting a little embarrassed,\u201d Perez said. \u201cThey are a little scared too \u2013 it\u2019s hard to open up and tell your story. But the groups are very welcoming.\u201d<\/p>\n
In addition to standing support groups there are two more formalized programs of 16 (Domestic Violence Education) and 21 (Life Skills) weeks, respectively. For 90 minutes each week, the groups go over what constitutes domestic violence \u2013 verbal abuse can hurt as much as a physical blow \u2013 individual situations, ways to cope and more.<\/p>\n
\u201cSome aren\u2019t convinced they are suffering from domestic violence,\u201d Perez said. \u201cOthers might feel like it\u2019s their fault, that they\u2019re doing something wrong. Then comes the ah-ha moment when they understand.\u201d<\/p>\n
Those being helped at the Resource Center range from survivors trying to navigate life on their own to people trying to decide what to do to change the dynamics of their home.<\/p>\n
Tools learned during the COVID-19 pandemic are still in use, too. Perez and the other case managers find themselves connecting virtually to try to help undocumented people afraid to leave their homes.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe understand their fear,\u201d she said. \u201cWe try to validate their feelings and help where we can. We\u2019re not sure how to keep them safe, but we try to help with the abuse situation as best we can by phone and over Zoom.\u201d<\/p>\n
Perez said that almost everyone who comes to the Resource Center for help can benefit from the Gift Card Drive, especially during the holiday season. Those who have children are even more in need.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor example, I have a client who just got a new place,\u201d Perez said. \u201cShe asked for a bed, and for sheets for the children for Christmas. We have to urge them to ask for a little more.\u201d<\/p>\n
That\u2019s where you come in, gentle reader. With your donation to the Gazette Gift Card Drive, you can provide the resources to help brighten lives facing dark times.<\/p>\n
How do I know? Twenty-one years of experience. In those 21 years, when the Grunion Gazette Gift Card Drive asked readers to donate a gift card or two, to write a check or make an online donation, you responded to the tune of more than $350,000.<\/p>\n
In the last few years, the daily Press-Telegram has joined in the drive, and P-T readers have added their generosity to the cause. The P-T is the Grunion\u2019s sister publication, with both owned by the Southern California News Group, and I truly appreciate the partnership.<\/p>\n
I know your generosity in the face of such need will prevail, but just in case, we have a bit of incentive for you too. Anyone donating $50 or more in cash or gift cards will be entered into a drawing for a table of 10 at the Long Beach Symphony\u2019s Sounds of Laurel Canyon Pops concert on March 21, 2026.<\/p>\n
In this case, the best gift cards are from those \u201ceverything\u201d stores like WalMart and Target. But we\u2019re not picky \u2013 anything is truly appreciated.<\/p>\n
You can drop gift cards or checks off at the WomenShelter\u2019s Resource Center, 4201 Long Beach Blvd., Suite 102, or at drop boxes in stores around the city. You can also donate by mail to Grunion Gift Card Drive, P.O. Box 17098, Long Beach, CA 90807.<\/p>\n
Checks should be made out to WomenShelter Long Beach with Gift Card Drive on the memo line.<\/p>\n
We have joined the modern era, and you can also donate directly online at the WomenShelter website, www.womenshelterlb.org. Go to the bottom of the home page and click on the Support The Grunion Holiday Gift Card Drive link or use this link \u2013 Donation Form.<\/p>\n
Christmas is going to be here before you know it, and this will be a short drive \u2013 the deadline for donations is Dec. 14 so the cards can be distributed before the holiday.<\/p>\n
So as soon as you\u2019re done packing the Thanksgiving leftovers, please take the time to make a donation. When you do, lots of thanks will be coming your way.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"When most people hear WomenShelter, they think of an emergency shelter where women (and now men) fleeing from…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":30193,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[7,8462,8461,131,133,132,137,3738],"class_list":["post-72155","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-long-beach","tag-california","tag-grunion-opinion","tag-grunion-pinch-of-salt","tag-long-beach","tag-long-beach-headlines","tag-long-beach-news","tag-los-angeles-county","tag-the-grunion"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/72155","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=72155"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/72155\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/30193"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=72155"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=72155"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=72155"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}