COORDINATED COMMUNITY RESPONSE COLUMN: You Are Believed, and It’s Not Your Fault

by SOPHIE SIELEN

Door County Coordinator/Victim Advocate, Family Services Sexual Assault Center

April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM) and an opportunity for additional collaboration to show support for survivors of sexual violence. The Sexual Assault Center works with other community partners throughout Door County to provide support to survivors of sexual violence no matter where they are in their healing journey. 

The Center is a program of Family Services that provides support to survivors of sexual violence throughout Northeast Wisconsin, with Door County one of four counties served by the Center. Advocates like me, who provide free and confidential support services to survivors of sexual violence, assisted more than 1,300 clients in 2023. The free and confidential services include one-on-one support at the hospital for sexual assault nurse exams and throughout the legal process. The program also provides support groups and prevention education at schools and organizations throughout the community.  

In honor of Sexual Assault Awareness Month, the Center is participating in the Paint the Town Teal initiative – a community-led initiative that involves painting teal ribbons on the front of businesses and lighting up buildings and landmarks with the color teal, symbolic of sexual assault awareness. This initiative seeks to send a powerful message of solidarity to survivors and remind everyone that sexual violence is not acceptable in our community.

Here in Door County, the Center is working with local coffee shops and businesses to show awareness and support for survivors of sexual violence. Community members are encouraged to participate.  

If you know a business who is interested in participating in Paint the Town Teal for SAAM, please feel free to paint a teal ribbon in the window or reach out to the Center’s 24/7 hotline at 920.746.8996 and we can help with getting the teal ribbon painted.

In collaboration with Paint the Town Teal, the Center also has Advocacy Kits available.  Each kit includes the following for a suggested donation of $25/kit:

• A set of lights, either blue (child abuse prevention) or teal (sexual assault awareness) to support the causes;
• A yard sign supporting both Child Abuse Prevention and Sexual Assault Awareness;
• A blue pinwheel; and
• A teal ribbon window cling.

If you are interested in receiving an Advocacy Kit and learning more about how you can support survivors, visit e.givesmart.com/events/BDD/. 

If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual violence, the Sexual Assault Center wants you to know that you are believed, what happened to you is not your fault, and it is never too late to speak to an advocate about what you went through. For more information about sexual violence in Door County or to speak with an advocate, please call 920.746.8996.

This article is brought to you in part by the Door County Coordinated Community Response (CCR) to Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Teams, and the Door County Elder and Adult-at-Risk Interdisciplinary Team.