Please join me in making a difference! Donate now to benefit New Directions Center. All donations will help us increase our reach and make an even greater impact! Thank you in advance for your contribution to this cause that means so much to so many.

Serving Augusta County and the cities of Staunton and Waynesboro since 1996, New Directions Center is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing support and advocacy to individuals and families affected by domestic violence, sexual assault, and human trafficking. To that end, the agency provides a comprehensive range of services free of charge to anyone in need, including emergency shelter, two crisis hotlines, court advocacy, and counseling (newdirectionscenter.org). All services are free of charge and available to anyone in need.

This past fiscal year, New Directions answered over 600 crisis hotline calls, provided 59 adults and 30 children with over 2,500 nights of shelter, supported 207 survivors with individual counseling and support groups, and accompanied 71 clients to court proceedings. Staff also provided 66 educational presentations to local churches, schools, businesses, and other organizations as part of the agency’s extensive community engagement program dedicated to public outreach and awareness.

Over that same period of time, government funding across the board was slashed, resulting in a $130,000 decrease in state and federal grants for the agency. While the need to diversify our funding base is obvious, such a pivot is a slow process that may not happen quickly enough to avoid cutting essential program services and/or positions. With caseload numbers only growing, and being the only provider of its kind in the second-largest county in Virginia, New Directions is an extremely important resource in the community, so any decrease in services would have a deleterious impact, particularly for lower-income individuals and families in need.

Your donations will afford New Directions the time needed to identify and cultivate additional funding sources so that the agency can carry on its mission"to reduce the impact of intimate partner violence, sexual assault, and human trafficking through survivor-centered advocacy, support services, community education, and awareness" well into the future.