OASIS offers safe haven for abuse victims

By Cara Kelly

Everyone who has been woken up by a phone call in the middle of the night knows the apprehension that

ensues before answering an unknown caller.

For the crisis-line volunteers at OASIS Inc., a ring at 2 a.m. often means there is someone in an emergency situation depending upon their help.

Thankfully, OASIS (Opposing Abuse with Service, Information and Shelter) staff has diligently trained their volunteers in handling such events. After answering, volunteers first offer a list of services and resources available to women in violent situations. If financial assistance, referrals or information about resources are not enough to keep a woman out of imminent danger, volunteers can transfer clients to the permanent staff member who resides at the OASIS emergency shelter to ensure their safety.

The shelter, a four-bedroom, family-sized house serves as a safe haven for battered women and is open to anyone who could be helped by immediate asylum. Although there is only space for 12 women and children to reside, OASIS staff most often can find a space for at least one night for a woman in crisis. If a bed is not available in the shelter, OASIS works with local hotels to see if any are able to donate a room.

Following the night of an emergency call, OASIS staff reviews the caller’s situation the next day to determine if she would be a candidate for temporary residence at the shelter based on need and compatibility with other residents.

“Oftentimes, we have women with abuse histories, but we have to really weigh who is in imminent danger,” executive director Jennifer Herman said.

If a client is in desperate need and seems as if she would fit in with the others in the communal living space, she is invited to use the temporary housing as a transitional point between her former home and a future place of her own.

The ultimate goal of the shelter and services provided by OASIS is to permanently remove a woman from a violent environment. However, if a woman decides to return to an abusive spouse, the employees of OASIS do not consider it a total defeat.

“A lot of times a woman will choose to go home, but we don’t feel that is a loss,” Herman said. “They walk away with the knowledge that we are here and they can call us.”

Herman, who has worked with the non-profit for 18 years, said that according to statistics she has gathered and read from other sources, women will be abused an average of seven times before permanently leaving the situation.

“My philosophy is that we are water on a hot stone,” Herman said. “It may not change in my lifetime, but it will eventually. We’d love to work ourselves out of a job here.”

The invaluable services available through OASIS are funded by grants and donations made by community organizations, the state and federal government and concerned individuals. One constant, local source of support for OASIS comes from the passionate ladies of the Appalachian Women’s Fund.

Recently, members of AWF agreed to donate $1,000 to the non-profit and, in turn, were given a tour of the emergency shelter to see where their money is being put to use.

Most often, their donations are used to fund the services provided by the organization; however, a portion of the donation will be used to create a garden with a memorial bench on the side of the new Family Resource Center. In addition to generous monetary contributions, the fund also volunteers time and energy to assist the non-profit with various activities.

President Nancy Ashline, her son and other members began working on the overgrown side-garden last month. To her dismay, Ashline urged her energetic teenage son to help pull weeds from the future site of the memorial bench, which the two later discovered after the appearance of an intense rash were actually poison ivy plants.

Yet, that is only one example of the dedication the women of AWF have for helping other female members in their community.

Another agency OASIS hopes to work more with in the future is the Watauga Humane Society.

OASIS was recently informed of a grant provided by the National Humane Society that provides funding for the construction of animal kennels on the property of domestic abuse emergency shelters.

“The National Humane Society recognized the correlation between domestic violence and animal abuse and are looking at options with local shelters at housing animals, as well,” Herman said. “We have had real accounts of pets killed in front of the family as a scare tactic by the abusive partner. Oftentimes, animals are being abused, as well, and it is used to threaten and intimidate family members.”

Nevertheless, OASIS would be unable to provide critical help to women of the High Country without the assistance of its passionate volunteers. Currently, the non-profit has 29 crisis-line volunteers, including Carmen Bondy, Heather Cameron, Danielle Catoe, Shawn Collins, Paul Gooding, Ivy Pritchard, Sara Zachary, Jamie Green, Lauren Style, Logan Kimbrell, Tyler Ellis, Helen Fabry, Connie Carringer, Chris Winsor, Michael Mullarkey, Melody Schwantes, Charlene Eloranta, Meg Anderson, Laura Torres, Tish Robertson, Steven Dixon, Margaret Crews, Marina Caro, Sarah Turner, Kelsey Smith, Janie Finnin, Andie Beard, Karen Gross and Rebecca Vaughn.

To learn more about OASIS and volunteer and donation opportunities, visit www.oasisinc.org.