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NEWS A10 • HERMISTONHERALD.COM WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 21, 2020 Domestic Violence Services helping survivors through pandemic By JADE MCDOWELL NEWS EDITOR October is Domestic Violence Aware- ness Month, and Domestic Violence Ser- vices wants people to know the nonprofit is still going strong during the pandemic. “We are here for people every day, 24 hours a day,” Director Kathryn Chaney said. DVS, which provides services for Umatilla and Morrow counties, is consid- ered an essential service and was able to operate its shelters for victims of domes- tic violence throughout the year. Chaney said the nonprofit has made adjustments for more social distancing and cleaning in shelters and in its offices, and offers many more virtual options for events. “We held two online trainings since the pandemic started for our crisis line volunteers, and they were very success- ful,” Chaney said. “We got several new volunteers.” The crisis line, at 800-833-1161, is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, year-round. Chaney said volun- teers can talk to people about an immedi- ate crisis, but also sometimes people also just want someone to talk to about the pain they’re experiencing, or they want to explore their options if they were to decide to leave their abuser. “They may not feel they have the option to leave now, but we can do safety planning for if the situation escalates,” she said. Domestic Violence Services is also running several support groups via Zoom. Some are for survivors of domestic vio- lence, others focus on survivors of sexual abuse specifically. There are also groups for people with family members, friends or coworkers who are experiencing domestic violence. Chaney said sometimes people struggle with watching the person they care about go through abusive situations, and they want to know how best to talk with that person about the situation without push- ing them away by being judgmental. People can also call the DVS advocacy centers in Hermiston, Pendleton, Board- man, Milton-Freewater and Heppner. Chaney said DVS has learned a lot through the pandemic, and while it has been an adjustment doing more things virtually and over the phone, it has also A Ridgeway Village apartment building was damaged by fire on Oct. 4, 2020. No one was injured in the blaze but residents lost their homes. GET HELP The 24/7 Domestic Violence Services crisis line is 1-800-833-1161. been a benefit, particularly for reaching people who are more isolated in rural areas of the counties. Chaney said the pandemic’s effects on domestic violence, particularly in the spring when people were mostly stuck at home, have been concerning to advocates. However, she said there hadn’t been a big surge in requests for shelter. Reports on domestic violence during the spring shutdown in Oregon were a mixed bag. The East Oregonian reported the Pendleton Police Department had seen a 50% increase in calls during April 2020 compared with April 2019 for all domes- tic offenses, such as assault, harassment and menacing, while Hermiston Police Department reported that domestic vio- lence calls were down 27% in April. Hermiston Police Chief Jason Edmiston said at the time that domestic violence calls make up a small enough volume of calls for departments of Hermiston and Pendleton’s size that a small change in numbers can create a large percentage increase or decrease. Chaney said there has been some addi- tional state funding available due to the pandemic, including personal protective equipment available to shelters and a pro- gram that assists domestic violence vic- tims affected by COVID-19 with their utility bills. While DVS has canceled its usual in-person soup dinner fundraiser for Domestic Violence Awareness Month, the nonprofit is holding an online auction to raise funds. Bids can be placed online between 8 a.m. on Oct. 28 and 7 p.m. on Nov. 4. They are also selling raffle tick- ets for a five-night stay at a resort in Palm Springs, California. To register for the auction or the raffle, visit dvs.or-org or the Domestic Violence Services, Inc. Facebook page. On Wednesday, Oct. 21, DVS is hold- ing an online informational presenta- tion on the effects of domestic violence on children from 5:30-7 p.m. To register to attend, email education@dvs-or.org or call 541-276-3322. Jade McDowell/Hermiston Herald Displaced residents describe apartment fire By JADE MCDOWELL NEWS EDITOR Residents displaced by a fire at Ridgeway Village apartments in Hermiston on Oct. 4 say they are still strug- gling to recover after losing their homes. According to Umatilla County Fire District No. 1, the district responded to the apartments at 2:13 a.m. on Oct. 4 to find “heavy fire” coming out of the first-floor apartment and extending into the upstairs unit and eaves of the roof. Altogether, two apartments were damaged by fire and two by smoke and water damage. The dis- trict also had to put holes in the building in some places to attack the fire. Linda R. Schoen, who lives in the apartment above where the fire apparently started, said she had gotten home and was “just trying to unwind” before getting into bed when she heard a com- motion outside. She said she has a neigh- bor with apparent mental ill- ness issues who frequently yells outside late at night, and at first, she thought it was just that neighbor’s usual ruckus. Then she realized the woman was shouting the word “fire.” “I thought, ‘I’d better look,’ and I opened my win- dow and smoke was pouring out the window,” she said. She ran downstairs and saw flames, so she pulled out her phone and called 911. She was so worried, she said, she couldn’t remember her own apartment number when the dispatcher asked. She said she ran back upstairs to get her dog, and then realized she had better pound on all the doors and windows in the building to make sure everyone got out. Mariza Altaf was one of those neighbors. She had fallen asleep with the televi- sion and a fan turned up loud in anticipation of the usual nighttime yelling episodes, but couldn’t ignore Schoen’s insistent knocking and yell- ing that there was a fire. “I ran out in my under- wear,” she said. “Linda was yelling, ‘Get out, the build- ing’s on fire.’ Every bone in my body was a noodle. I don’t know how I did any- thing, but I grabbed my pants and my dog and my shoes on the way out the door.” She said Schoen was insis- tent in making sure everyone got out, pounding on walls next to people’s bedrooms if they didn’t come to the door. Altaf said even though her apartment and belongings were severely damaged, she has a good renter’s insurance policy and expects to receive a payout to replace every- thing she lost. She said she was worried about Schoen, who lost everything and does not have the means to replace it. “This woman saved my life,” she said. “She was my friend before but now I’m indebted to her.” Schoen said the apartment complex was going to let her into her apartment to see what she might be able to sal- vage, and some people have offered to donate items. But right now she is staying in a small motel room, and said she doesn’t have any room to store items or the money to rent a storage unit. She also doesn’t know when she will get into a new apartment, as HUD was paying for her pre- vious housing and the wait- ing list to get into a HUD apartment is months long. According to a news release from UCFD1, no one was injured because “the occupants of the apart- ment complex were very effective at getting every- one out before fire crews arrived.” The department didn’t return a call asking about the fire’s cause. A WORC taxi will get you to and from your job anywhere in western Umatilla County. Anyone who comes in through the end of December, can get four FREE punch cards, which equals 40 one-way rides to/from work. Visit https://hermiston.or.us/public-transit to find out how to sign up, and how WORC and the HART bus service work together to connect Hermiston.
