In the state of Nebraska, each county is covered by a dating violence/sexual assault provider. On 215 West Second Street, is the Haven House. In 1978, after a seminar was conducted American Association of University Women and Wayne State College staff determined that there was a need for services for victims of domestic violence and their children.
Haven House was started the next year in 1979 as a non-profit. Any victim of domestic violence now had a place to receive food, clothing, access to medical services, transportation, emergency, temporary shelter and so much more.
The nonprofit is still here in Wayne 48 years later serving the counties of Dakota, Cedar, Thurston and Wayne along with the Winnebago and Omaha tribes. Three WSC graduates help run the location in Wayne.
Myah Phillips is the criminal justice liaison and ensures that people are treated fairly through the system. She graduated from Wayne in 2023 as a criminal justice major.
Amber Bruegman the SA/DV supervisor, who was a human services and counseling major, knew she always wanted to work with people. An internship introduced her to the field of work that was Haven House, and she stayed ever since she graduated in 2021.
Cindy Sanchez, the bilingual advocate, graduated in 2024 with her degree in human service counseling. Sanchez also knew she wanted to help people, and getting to work in the field and help educate people makes her feel good about the work that is done at Haven House.
Some of the services offered by Haven House are emergency shelter, emergency transportation, medical accompaniments, help with filling out victim statements, accompaniment to court/police, protection order assistance and often just necessities to those who are coming from a bad situation.
“A lot of times when people come to us, they’re starting at square one, they don’t have toothpaste, they don’t have $5 to their name,” Phillips said. “They have nothing, and so we come in and we give them a lot of resources.”
One in 10 high school students have experienced physical violence from a dating partner in the last year. In 2010, it was declared by Congress that February would be recognized as Teen Dating Violence Month. Haven House’s main service is domestic violence; however, they carry the mission of teen dating violence with them.
It’s been proven that individuals who grow up in relationships or violent relationships within adolescents are much more likely to become victims again or preparators of violence. 1 in 5 victims of teen dating violence have said that they experienced digital abuse or harassment at school during school hours.
The most dangerous age for women to experience intimate partner violence are the ages of 16 to 24. This is when they might experience their first unhealthy relationship. LGBTQ+ individuals and teens are more likely to experience violence or dating violence than their heterosexual peers.
There are healthy, unhealthy, and abusive kinds of relationships. Healthy relationships are when there are open and honest communications, when both partners are equal, and when there is respect.
Unhealthy relationships signs include when someone makes you feel guilty, a lack of communication and that can begin to escalate into abusive behaviors like manipulation, making someone feel bad for living their own life.
Haven House has gone and given presentations at the Wakefield school and have been invited over for domestic violence. Haven House has hosted an event for younger children where they will typically play a game, and they encourage people to share information with their children.
“Violence goes beyond just the physical,” Bruegman said. “It’s emotional, psychological, financial and spiritual. A lot of people use religion as a way to control someone else. A lot of time people will be talking, and they’ll be like, well, they never hit me. It doesn’t have to escalate to that.”
Advertisements for the Haven House are run in the Wayne Stater, which they feel are important because sometimes people can get overwhelmed reading a “am i going through DV” information packet. So, if they see the ad, Haven House might stick in the back of their mind and eventually lead them to seek help.
It can also provide a way for people to educate themselves. People can also educate themselves on their website, https://havenhousefsc.com, which has an emergency exit button that won’t track a person’s history in case they are in a dangerous situation.
Even though the advocates are not lawyers or therapists, they can and will take the journey with the victim. When helping victims fill out protection orders, they will provide a flow chart that explains what is appropriate for their situation.
Referrals are an important component within Haven House depending on the relationships and community they’ve built with places like Providence, Midtown, and Heartland Counseling in South Sioux. It can be intimidating to refer a person to a random building, so it is very helpful to know an inside man. Just telling a victim the name of someone can be less intimidating.
Respect week is February 8-10, and Haven House will have a table at the college on Feb. 11. They also encourage people to wear the color orange on February 10 to raise awareness for teen dating violence.
For anyone experiencing any kind of violence, the Haven House’s hours are 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Their crisis line can be called any time of the day at 1-800-440-4633 to be connected with an advocate. All services are confidential and anonymous.
