Judge Rosemary Collins announces Safe Havens grant to county

Staff Report

Judge Rosemary Collins, chairperson of the 17th Judicial Circuit Court Family Violence Coordinating Council announced Tuesday, Oct. 2, that Winnebago County is the recipient of the Safe Havens grant awarded by the Office on Violence Against Women at the Department of Justice.

The County and its collaborative partners will use the $400,000 provided by this grant to create a new supervised visitation facility which would allow for the safe, supervised visitation of children. Experienced trained staff will supervise visitation in a secure setting. This will protect adult victims and children, while holding abusers accountable. Winnebago County will work collaboratively, in each step of the planning and implementation phases of the project, with Remedies Renewing Lives, Rockford Sexual Assault Counseling, Inc., Children’s Safe Harbor, and the 17th Judicial Circuit Court of Illinois.

The Honorable Rosemary Collins said, “Chairman Christiansen and the Winnebago County Board continue to demonstrate their commitment to keeping families safe in our community through their support and willingness to collaborate on projects such as the Safe Havens Supervised Visitation program.”

From the Oct. 3-9, 2012, issue