Staying in a shelter is not forever. It’s a temporary step towards living free from fear and moving into a hopeful, happy life.
Important things to know about our shelter:
- Safe & Private. Because our shelters are in safe and private locations you’ll be asked to keep the location secret as well as the stories of others staying there.
- Free to Stay. You do not pay to stay with us and most stays are from 6-12 weeks.
- Transportation. We can drive you and your family to the shelter.
- Basic Needs. We provide necessities like food, clothing and toiletries for the first few days of your stay.
- Sleeping arrangements. If you come alone, you will likely share a bedroom. We try to provide families their own room. Common areas are shared like bathrooms – kitchen – living rooms – laundry rooms.
- Visitor Policy. No visitors allowed.
- Action Plan. Counselors and advocates at your service daily to help you with your long-term plans or legal help.
- Access. There may be computers you can use to check your email and access online resources. Free cell phones for 911 calls only.
SafeNest Shelter Frequently Asked Questions:
Admission to the shelter starts with a call to the Crisis Hotline (702-646-4981) and completing a confidential phone interview. If it is determined that our shelter program will be providing shelter to you a pre-determined safe meeting location will be given. In some situations you may be given other shelter resources to provide your shelter needs. Our shelter provides not only the basic necessities but emotional, therapeutic and advocacy support for victims of domestic violence.
At SafeNest we understand that the journey to safety is exhausting and challenging. We allow for you to catch your breath and rest for the first two days before completing the intake process. During intake you will receive an advocate that will assist you in your journey to starting over and healing. During your first week in shelter you will attend an orientation that will help you navigate the services and resources offered here at shelter. If you wish, an advocate can assist you in obtaining resources for legal assistance including but not limited to a protection order. We believe that you should be in charge of your healing process and will assist you in reaching your goals.
We help all victims of domestic abuse regardless of age, race, gender, sexual orientation. We provide shelter in two settings depending on the client’s needs, either through communal living at our shelter or through our confidential hotel program. Both programs provide support and access to therapy, resources and other services needed to heal from domestic abuse.
At SafeNest we believe it is important to create an environment that address the needs of the entire family including children 0-17years old. Children are provided opportunities to experience life without domestic abuse this includes attending school, structured actives in our playroom, fun respite activities and family bonding opportunities. At SafeNest we provide trained staff to support the family and children with therapy, resources and parenting classes.
We realize pets are family. SafeNest works with a local veterinarian to board pets for shelter residents.
For safety reasons and privacy for other guest, we do not allow visitors.
At SafeNest survivors are provided safety and support in a clean, homey confidential environment. At our shelter we provide support for your daily basic needs i.e shampoo, clothing and free laundry in addition to the below items:
- Parenting classes, one on One therapy sessions on site, Support Group, Life Skill Classes, Substance Abuse /Mental Health support and assistance
- Assigned Advocate/Case manager, Housing application assistance
- Community resources, Job resources including Job Connect
- Court Assistance including assistance completing paperwork and much more
- Bus passes
You can bring your vehicle if it is registered to you or you are married to the registered owner. For the safety of you and the other residents we ask that you ensure your car is not equipped with a tracking device from a financial institution or your partner. IF you have any concerns please discuss during your phone intake. Safe Nest does provide bus passes to assist in transportation during your stay.
The time needed to heal from domestic abuse varies from survivor to survivor. Please talk with your advocate or the hotline for more information regarding time frame of the program.
At times we have to place callers on our waitlist due to our program being full. We try our best to provide callers with referrals to other programs. In the case where no programs have space available SafeNest hotline advocates will discuss ways to stay safe during your waiting time.
For safety reason’s we ask that all cell phones GPS abilities are discontinued while in shelter. For additional safety we ask that all laptops and tablets remain in your assign locker while on property. SafeNest will provide a computer for your business and school needs.
The SafeNest shelter is in a confidential location for the safety and well-being of you and the other residents that reside in the shelter. The first step to healing is feeling safe, and we want everyone to feel they are.