Our mission is to help abused women and their children break the cycle of violence in their lives.

St. Martha's Hall offers:

• Confidential, temporary shelter, food & clothing
• Support groups
• Individual counseling
• Advocacy program to assist women through:
    - legal
    - medical
    - social and
    - governmental agencies
  
• Information & referral
• Parenting groups
• Children's therapy program to help them deal with the effects of domestic violence
• Follow-up program
• Community education

St. Martha's Hall Children's Program
St. Martha's nationally recognized Children's Program has five objectives:

• To reverse misconceptions that the child might have, including the beliefs that he/she is the cause of the violence, that he/she should have been able to improve or change the situation, and that woman battering happens only in his/her family
• To reduce incidents of aggressive behavior in both the parent and child
• To present the belief that violence is neither normal nor acceptable
• To foster self-esteem and self-awareness
• To provide developmental, educational and medical advocacy

Our objectives are supported by the following methods:

• Availability of group, individual and family counseling
• Assessing the needs of each child through a comprehensive interview and observation
• Establishing a family goal plan between mother and counselor
• Disseminating appropriate information and referrals
• Banning the use and the threat of physical punishment
• Nonacceptance of war toys and other violent plays
• Identifying and reporting suspected incidents of child abuse or neglect
• Providing both a physically and emotionally safe environment structured for a child's needs
• Requiring all adult residents to attend on-site parenting groups