Domestic violence and sexual assault is an issue that hits closer to Wayne than you may think. April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month, so Haven House and KWSC-FM partnered to spread awareness for 24-hours straight.
KWSC-FM is the college radio station at Wayne State known as 91.9 The Cat, Your Music Authority. This station is run by students as part of the radio workshop classes.
The classes teach and create opportunities for students to take on various projects including broadcasting and podcasting.
The 24-hour remote is a project led by senior Lisa DaVonne Dohmen. The 24-hour remote with Haven House has happened in years prior, and this was a tradition Dohmen was happy to take on.
“The process of planning this event took months,” Dohmen said. “There was coordination with numerous people.” The pressure was on the senior and she was able to coordinate the event without a hitch.
Haven House was started 43 years ago. In the past year, Haven House has served 340 survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence. Haven House serves survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking and human trafficking.
All of these services are free and confidential.
They serve Cedar, Dixon, Dakota, Thurston and Wayne counties. Last year, Haven House answered 1,302 crisis calls from their 24/7 crisis line that can be reached at 1-800-440-4633.
Haven House has a staff of six people, depending on volunteers and interns. Funding comes from grants and private donations, but they are always open to donations. This is something that the remote helped to promote.
Through use of a Venmo link, the remote raised $164 for Haven House. There are also buckets for donations at local businesses like The Table, Swans Apparel, and The Wayne Greenhouse. These will be at the businesses for the entirety of April for Sexual Assault Awareness Month.
Domestic violence awareness is something near to Dohmen’s heart.
“When I was younger, my mother was in a terrible relationship with my biological father and it turned abusive,” Dohmen said. “If it wasn’t for an organization like Haven House, I don’t know where our family would be today.”
Families are saved every year due to service centers like Haven House. Issues like domestic violence and sexual assault is a tough issue to seek help on but there is help available out there even in this small community.
The 24-hour remote had 24 hours of live DJs. This was manned by the students in the radio workshop classes, so even if you tuned in at four in the morning you can hear hits like “All-Star” by Smashmouth followed with one of the DJs of 91.9 The Cat.
Each student did their part filling out the schedule. “Filling the time slots wasn’t too hard with our class size,” radio station general manager, Blake Hilkemeier said. “Everyone was ready to help out.” Some students had experience from the remote held in 2019.
A part of the remote was hosted at Prime Stop east of Wayne. For a few hours, there were DJs on the scene in the afternoon spreading awareness and speaking with people in town about the good Haven House does and Sexual Assault Awareness Month.
This allowed for some to share their stories with sexual assault and domestic violence.
You can access the college station on the local airwaves on 91.9 KWSC-FM or thecat.wsc.edu and the Tune In App. You can reach their socials on Facebook at Your Music Authority and @919thecat on Twitter.
You can call Haven House at 402-375-5433 or you can reach their 24/7 crisis line at 1-800-440-4633. Their website is havenhousefsc.org.
Do not hesitate to call because they are ready to help with whatever the situation may be. Every person has the power to create change and can make a difference towards ending sexual violence.