Citizens Opposed to Domestic Abuse (CODA)

Posted by Dot Jeger

Kristin Dubrowski, Executive Director of Citizens Opposed to Domestic Abuse (CODA) serving Beaufort, Jasper and ColletonCounties, talked to the Bluffton Rotary Club on Wednesday, June 18th. The mission of CODA is to prevent domestic violence, which can come in the form of physical abuse, emotional abuse, economic abuse, sexual abuse, intimidation or isolation, just to name a few types of abuse. According to Dubrowski, they will sometimes see physical abuse, but they'll always see emotional abuse. A lot of abuse is very insidious and comes over a long period of time.

If we think this problem is not all around us, we may be surprised to know that SC was ranked #1 in the nation for women killed annually from domestic abuse, but we are now ranked 7th. There is progress. CODA was founded in 1986 and answered over 3,000 crisis calls in 2007, 2,000+ of which came from BeaufortCounty.

There are many programs available through CODA including a shelter program, a 24x7 crisis hotline staffed by full-time paid staff, individual and group counseling, support groups, a legal advocacy program, with a lawyer on staff and a community education program.

According to Dubrowski, there are a myriad of opportunities for volunteers, along with volunteer training.

Learn more about CODA HERE