Painting by Leonid Afremov
Related to a domestic violence situation and an expectant mother – here is her story.
She recently fled from an abusive relationship. She and the two other children have been staying in a motel. She reached out to an adoption agency.
Adoption agencies are predatory – they have to create that sense of obligation, so women will feel obligated to carry through with the adoption plans. In this case, they said the would pay for the mom and her kids to stay in the motel from now through 6 week’s postpartum. Keep in mind here, mom has a decent job. She can afford rent at an actual residence. It’s help with deposits and first and last month’s rent she needs help with. She certainly can’t save for that while paying for a motel.
That is how I learned about Special Assessment Intervention and Liaison (SAIL). Someone mentioned it and believes it is federal. They help pay deposits and utilities when a woman is fleeing domestic violence. The program’s goals are Safety and Self-sufficiency for each domestic violence victim and her family. They seek to determine if participation in work activities and/or child support enforcement activities would put the client at increased risk of danger.
Some of the SAIL Project services include – developing a safety plan, assisting in obtaining safe housing, filing for protection orders, attending court proceedings with the client, providing referrals to individual and group counseling and/or support groups, identifying community resources and obtain other necessary services and/or goods. Beyond direct client work, they educate employers about domestic violence and its extended costs.
Examples of some of the expenses SAIL might cover – Repairs for damage done by the perpetrator to the home in which the client lives such as broken windows, doors, locks, etc. Repairs for damage to the victim’s car that was done by the perpetrator and are necessary to safely operate the car. Deposits for rent and utilities for the victim to move away from the violence. Certain transportation costs, such as commercial travel fare, gas, truck/van rental (not insurance).
blogger’s note – I don’t know if this SAIL program is available in every state in the US. My information above came from program information related to the state of LINK>Alabama.
Missing Mom 