Serving Clay County with pride for nearly 20 years!

Identifying the Need 
Early in 1988, the outreach committee of Orange Park Presbyterian Church identified safe shelter and other services for victims of domestic violence in Clay County as a "critical and local need."

When the steering committee investigated the needs in Clay County concerning battered women and their children, they found the nearest shelter was Hubbard House in Duval County, and it was usually full. Even if a woman could get to Duval County, the services she needed to access in Clay County were located in Orange Park and Green Cove Springs and there was no regular bus service between Jacksonville and these cities.

When checking the local statistics on domestic violence calls against the number of women actually sheltered in Hubbard House, it was discovered that women in Clay County weren't going to Hubbard House. Shelter was needed in Clay County!

Establishing Services
Quigley House is named in honor of Pansy Quigley, who lived in Green Cove Springs from 1912 to 1988, and who was well known in Clay County for her volunteer work. The mission of Quigley House was established as such: "to break the cycle of domestic abuse by providing crisis intervention, temporary shelter, protection, counseling, community education, and prevention programs."

A Board of Directors was formed, and Quigley House was incorporated December 21, 1988. Extensive planning and fundraising began on the part of the Board. On Labor Day 1990, the 24-hour hotline began operating with 34 trained volunteer phone counselors (two of these staff are currently employed by Quigley House!).

The use of a house for a shelter, rent-free, was obtained. After extensive renovation, the shelter opened its doors March 21, 1991, and has been providing continuing service ever since. The facility was expanded from 12 beds to 16 in 1995 through the addition of a mobile office unit on the grounds.  Quigley House added paid evening and weekend staff in August 1991, and a part-time counselor in October 1991. The agency currently has 18 full-time, 9 part-time, and 4 contract employees in addition to dozens of volunteers that give their time to the agency each month.

In 1994, Quigley House started a batterer's intervention program for men called "Alternatives." It is a 26-week educational program for batterers, with fees based on income. Victim Advocates perform weekly "Partner Checks" to ensure the safety of partners as their former batterers attend these weekly classes. Quigley House's Alternatives program is the only State-certified batterer's intervention program in Clay County.

Reaching Out
Women and children in Clay County who are, or who have been, living with violence may not need safe shelter but are in desperate need of counseling and advocacy services. To meet this ever-growing need, Quigley House operates out of five outreach locations throughout Clay County.

Counseling and support groups are provided in Orange Park, as well as the shelter; free to victims of domestic violence and/or sexual assault.

Two trained advocates provide Court advocacy on-site at the Clay County Courthouse. These advocates assist victims in filing for injunctions for protection, accompanying victims to court proceedings, and providing appropriate advocacy within the legal system.

Quigley House advocates spend time at the Keystone and Orange Park Senior Centers in an effort to identify elders who might benefit from Quigley House services. These advocates provide appropriate information and referrals when clients report they have suffered violence at home.

Quigley House offers two safety programs to help women who are being stalked and/or who fear they are in danger of continued assault from their past abuser. ADT Security Systems provides time-limited systems and service free of charge to victims of domestic violence. Through support from Sprint PCS and Bellsouth Mobility, Quigley House operates the Cell Phone Safety program; victims are provided cellular phones programmed to only dial "911." Local law enforcement dispatch maintains information regarding participating clients to aid in ensuring an immediate and appropriate response when an ADT or Cell Phone client utilizes these services.

Community Collaboration
Quigley House initiated the Clay Domestic Violence Intervention project in 1994. The Sheriff, local police chiefs, all judges, the State Attorney's Office, Clerk of the Court, School Superintendent, public defenders, the Alternatives' facilitator, and the Director of Quigley House met quarterly to network and see how the system could be improved to work more effectively. Through this project, the following programs were formed:

Every third grade child in Clay County will have information on domestic violence and Quigley House included in the curriculum presented by Youth Resource Officers.

The State Attorney's Office will not accept a domestic violence victim's petition to drop criminal charges or an injunction until the victim has attended the psycho-educational program provided by a Quigley House Victim Advocate.

Quigley House began providing counseling and advocacy services to adult victims of sexual assault in January of 1998. These services include individual and group counseling, as well as 24-hour advocacy to assist victims of emergent sexual assault during the forensic examination and interview(s). As sexual assault services had never before been provided in Clay County, Quigley House initiated the Sexual Assault Task Force to prevent service duplication and to establish policies of coordination with local law enforcement, emergency room personnel, and other professionals working with sexual assault victims. The Task Force meets monthly. In October of 2000, Quigley expanded these counseling services to include adolescent victims of sexual assault. Currently, Quigley House is the only provider of free sexual assault counseling services to adolescent victims of non-familial sexual assault in the Northeastern Florida area.

Quigley House Today
The emergency shelter is open and staffed seven days a week, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, as is the Hotline. The current facility was opened in August 1999, after a $1.8 million capital campaign to fund the construction. This new facility has the capacity to shelter 46 women and children!

Information and appropriate referrals are made to all callers, and clients seeking emergency shelter are screened to determine that they are victims of domestic violence or assault and that they are appropriate for shelter (i.e., level of danger, ability to function in a communal living situation, etc.). Quigley House provides services to non-shelter clients through our many outreach locations in Clay County, including the Clay County Courthouse, and the One Stop Center for WAGES/TANF clients in Orange Park.

Continued Growth
Quigley House entered into a new venture in March 2000. In addition to providing safe shelter to enable domestic violence victims an opportunity to rebuild their lives, Quigley House began providing the means for doing so. Four apartments were purchased to provide low-cost, transitional housing to domestic violence victims who have made a commitment to leading violence-free lives. A dedicated Transitional Case Manager provides intensive case management services to assist these residents in such areas as budgeting, employability skills, parenting skills, etc. In addition, these residents will continue ongoing individual counseling services through our shelter and outreach programs.

In Quigley House's quest to provide victim services to all victims in Clay County, and to focus on those traditionally underserved populations, we are expanding our services to the elderly. As of November 2000, we expanded our scope of service provision to include those elder victims of not only intimate partners, but also family members.

Additional funding has also been obtained to provide an additional advocate in the Sexual Assault Program in order to provide expanded court advocacy services to adolescent and adult victims of sexual assault.

The following Quigley House services are provided free to victims of domestic violence and/or sexual assault:

24 Hour Emergency Shelter

Individual Counseling

Group Counseling

Victim Advocacy

24-Hour Crisis Hotline

Child Assessment and Counseling

Community Education Services

Case Management

Client Enrichment Programs

Information and Referral

Sexual Assault Advocacy

Transitional Case Management

These services are provided on a sliding fee scale:

Transitional Housing

Alternatives (Batterers Intervention Program for Men)

Our Funding
Quigley House currently receives funds from the United Way, the Florida Coalition Against Domestic Violence, Clay County, and other Federal and State grants (VOCA), but still depends on the generosity of the community for nearly one-half of the operating budget. Community support for Quigley House is evidenced by generous donations of funds, goods and services by individuals, churches, organizations, and businesses. The Board of Directors hosts the "Every Women Can…Live Without Fear" educational campaign in October coinciding with Domestic Violence Awareness Month; and at least one fundraiser per year, such as our "Celebrity Waiter " event and our "Score Against Violence" golf tournament.

Quigley House is seeking to be more proactive in fundraising. To this end, Quigley House opened its new venture, a thrift shop in October 2005. The Quigley House Thrift Store enables its consumers to purchase high quality furniture, clothing, and household items for very little, while supporting the many programs offered by Quigley House. Additionally, Quigley House partners with Outreach of America in a Bingo venture that increases needed revenue for the agency.

Recognition
Quigley House was the first ever recipient of the Reinhold Community Service Award for Outstanding Service to Clay County, and has been a runner-up in the Governor's Peace at Home Awards. Members of our Board of Directors have been recognized through numerous awards for their contributions to Quigley House. Ann Kopelousos was a finalist in the Florida Times-Union EVE Awards in 1988 for her work on our $1.8 million Campaign to Build New Beginnings. Jerry Linder, President of the Vintage Group, was recognized with a Volunteer Jacksonville Gold Rule Award for providing construction management services throughout the planning and building of Quigley House's new, permanent facility. Linder was also recognized as one of WTLV's Twelve Who Care Honorees in 1999.

More recently, Quigley House was the winner of the Florida Council on Aging 2003 Quality Senior Living Award for Service to Seniors by an organization, and the recipient of the 2007 Paul E. Reinhold Community Service Award

Planning for the Future
The Board, staff, and volunteers of Quigley House remain committed to meeting the growing demand for services in Clay County and to working to eradicate domestic and sexual violence.

At Quigley House, we continue to face a difficult barrier when trying to help families escaping violence get back on their feet--affordable daycare. The Love the Children Center, sponsor by the Jacksonville Jaguars Foundation, was built to meet daycare certification standers. Plans are being made to provide limited, free daycare for shelter residents and clients receiving services through out outreach programs.