PORT ANGELES — As the number of people served by Healthy Families of Clallam County skyrockets, the nonprofit is bracing for funding cuts that could devastate its budget.
Current budget projections indicate that the organization may have 30 percent, or about $250,000, less funding than it did last year. However, the organization could receive some alternative extra funding that may reduce the deficit to only about 15 percent, Executive Director Leslie Bond said.
“It’s so hard, because it’s so unknown,” Bond said. With the fiscal year ending June 30, she’s hoping all of the grants will be sorted out and the agency will have a better idea of what it’s working with.
Almost all of the agency’s funding is through the state or federal government, which is where the majority of the cuts will likely occur. If the cuts are severe, Bond said the organization will likely have to get rid of two apartment leases, cut back on staff hours and do away with the extra funds used for things clients might need, such as birth certificates, rent, gas, food and more.
“It [budget cuts] impacts the advocates, and us, but really who it impacts is our clients and the community as a whole as far as what we are able to do,” Program Manager Sarah McBride said.
If the cuts are drastic, Bond said Healthy Families will have to rely on community donations of money and supplies. Individuals interested in donating can call the organization at 360-452-3811 or donate on the website at healthyfam.org.
Due to the uncertainty of federal funding, Bond said the organization won’t be going after any federal funding at the moment.
Healthy Families is a “quad agency,” Bond said, that addresses four main subjects: crime, domestic violence, sexual assault and child advocacy. These programs are collectively run by eight and a half full-time staff.
The number of people served by the agency has been ratcheting upward this year. From July 2023 to June 2024, the agency served 407 domestic violence victims, 179 sexual assault victims and 250 crime victims.
From July 2024 through April of this year, Healthy Families has already served 473 domestic violence victims, 156 sexual assault victims and 279 crime victims.
The domestic violence program provides assistance to individuals and families experiencing intimate partner violence. In addition to providing safety plans and other support for individuals experiencing domestic violence, there is also a prevention educator who provides education to children on healthy relationships and boundaries.
Healthy Families also provides temporary shelter, and supplies, with six different apartments for victims and their families. These apartments are typically occupied on a rotating basis of 30 to 90 days. One of the apartments is reserved for single women, and the others tend to house families. Healthy Families is one of the only family shelters in the area, McBride said.
The nonprofit also runs Rose House, a transitional housing shelter for six families. The organization also has hotel vouchers it can use to house individuals and families who have experienced crime, domestic violence or sexual assault.
It also provides legal information and referrals to lawyers who can give official legal assistance. This often comes into play for crimes, which could include elder abuse and neglect, fraud, scams, property crime and more.
The final prong of Healthy Families is the child advocacy center, established in 2012. This center facilitates interviews of children who have been victims of or a witness to a crime.
To enable this, Healthy Families has established a room that allows a forensic interviewer who questions the child. That interview is watched live by law enforcement, child protective services, prosecution and more. It is also recorded, which allows the child to only tell their story once.
County protocol has established that most children go through the center. Last year, 96 children were interviewed.
There is also a multi-disciplinary team composed of law enforcement, nurses, therapists, child protective services, advocates, prosecution and more. The team meets monthly to go over a case and make sure things are moving forward.
Healthy Families mainly serves eastern and central Clallam County, with Mariposa House typically taking clients from the western end. Bond said Healthy Families is one of the few quad agencies in the state.
If the agency has the chance to grow in the future, Bond said she hopes the agency could buy the building and the apartments it uses, create a barrier of entry into its shelter units and more.
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Reporter Emma Maple can be reached by email at emma.maple@peninsuladailynews.com.
