Will County Gazette

Village of New Lenox Safe Communities America, Domestic Violence Prevention Task Group met Nov. 13.

Here are the minutes provided by the task group:

CALL TO ORDER

This meeting was held via Zoom videoconference. Dan Martin called the meeting to order at 10:32am.

IN ATTENDANCE

Dan Martin / Village of New Lenox, Meaghan South / Trinity Services Family Counseling Center, Marie Kress / The Kennedy Center for Counseling, Jen Vujosevic / Lincoln Way Community High School District 210, Olga Viano / New Lenox Community Park District, Jennefer Hofferica / Nadine’s Blue Butterfly, Daneen Taylor / Linden Oaks Behavioral Health, Erin H/Hines VA Hospital, Breann Fisher/Guardian Angels Sexual Assault, and Amirrah Abou-Youssef / Family Violence Coordinating Council – 12 Judicial District.

APPROVAL OF MINUTES

The minutes from the September 11, 2023 Task Group meeting, which had been disseminated via email to Task Group members, were discussed. Marie Kress made a motion to approve the minutes, which was seconded by Jennefer Hoffercia. After no further discussion, the motion carried and the minutes were approved.

OLD BUSINESS

Collaborative Partners

The group did not welcome any new members to the task group however, the group spoke about keeping this in mind as they continue to make connections in the community.

“One Thing Speak Up, Speak Out: Elder Abuse” - October 2, 2023 from 6pm to 8pm The task group spoke about the event and how the event topic of Elder Abuse was well received by those in attendance. There were over 40 individuals that attended the event and there were 10 organizations that were present at the resource fair. The group thanked Amirrah for her hard work in organizing the event and for facilitating the panel discussion.

NEW BUSINESS

“Building and Supporting Healthy Relationships” – In Support of Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month The task group spoke about the next event that is coming up for the task group. They spoke about different ideas they had, including potential dates. The group spoke about possibly targeting teens through a movie and discussion to switch the information up on how it is being delivered to them. A planning team was formed with Dan Martin, Meaghan South, Jennefer Hofferica, Breann Fisher, and Amirrah Abou-Yousself. This group will pick a date to meet and report ideas for the planning committee coming up at the next Task Group meeting in the new year.

GOOD OF THE ORDER / ORGANIZATION UPDATES

Amirrah Abou-Youssef spoke about a few events that were coming up in Will County.

• Lunch and Learn for Will County 988 - December 6th at 12:30pm to 1:30pm

• Lunch and Learn on 211 will be coming soon for more details

• Traumatic Brain Injury and IPV will be on January 31, 2024

• The last Drop Film Screening will be on February 8, 2024 at Lewis University

• NNEDV Tech Safety will be in person all day at Lewis University on April 11th 2024

Jennefer Hofferica spoke about their Santa Shopping event that was coming up and what is offered to the community members. If you are interested in the event, please contact her directly.

The next New Lenox Safe Communities Coalition Meeting will be held on November 29, 2023 at 10:30am via Zoom videoconference.

NEXT MEETING DATE

The next meeting of the Domestic Violence Prevention Task Group will be Monday, January 15, 2024 / 10:30am via Zoom videoconference.

ADJOURNMENT

The meeting adjourned at 11:13am.

Domestic Violence Prevention Task Group

“To reduce physical injuries and deaths, and emotional injury and hardships, associated with domestic violence, through the establishment of collaborative partnerships and the implementation of educational programs, strategies and initiatives.”

https://www.newlenox.net/files/documents/SafeCommunitiesAmericaTaskGroupsMinutes11-13-23103633112923AM1352.pdf