Through funding from the Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) Culturally and Linguistically Specific Services Program (CLSSP), Korean American Family Services (KFAM) was able to strengthen our domestic violence (DV) services by hiring a full-time Korean-speaking family advocate wholly dedicated to direct victim services to increase types of services for DV victims and to strengthen the infrastructure of the DV program. Prior to the grant, DV services have been a part of the counseling department, which limited services to mostly mental health counseling, crisis intervention and the hotline.
With the grant, we were able to create a separate three-person DV department with a full-time family advocate to provide extensive DV services to victims. KFAM’s full range of DV services are now:
• 24-hour hotline
• mental health counseling
• crisis intervention
• DV education
• Life Beyond support group
• family law clinics and legal advocacy
• Support letters for U-Visa and VAWA petitions,
• hospital accompaniment
• language services
• victim advocacy
• child supervised visitation
• employment and financial counseling
• walk-in inquiries and appointment based services.
With the expansion of our services, KFAM’s goal was to address the gap that exists for victims who do not go into shelters and choose to live in the community or in their unstable environment. KFAM is focused on providing trauma-informed services by meeting the victims where they are, in their process of healing. Whether the victims are still living with their abusers, residing in a shelter or in some other situation, our services are catered to assist the victims wherever they are in their continuum of healing so that they can be empowered to create and maintain an independent and safe lifestyle that is free of violence.
For more information on KFAM’s Domestic Violence Department, please contact Jennifer Oh, MSW, Domestic Violence program manager at JOh@kfamla.org.
This post was sponsored by KFAM, which is part of KoreAm’s Community Network, a section reserved for local and national nonprofit organizations. The opinions expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of KoreAm.
* * *
Korean American Family Services (KFAM)
KFAM’s mission is to strengthen and support Korean American families and individuals in the greater Los Angeles area through counseling, education, and social services. Founded in 1983 by a group of Korean immigrant women deeply influenced by the pioneering work of Dr. Tae Young Lee, Korea’s first female attorney and an early advocate of the rights of women and children, KFAM began with its primary focus on assisting victims of family violence. KFAM has grown into the community’s preeminent family resource center, specializing in culturally and linguistically competent mental health, family violence and support services to Korean Americans in Los Angeles.
3727 West 6th St., Suite 320
Los Angeles, CA 90020
t: (213) 389 – 6755
f: (213) 389 – 5172
