This project will work to bring crime victim services to marginalized communities within Jefferson and Clallam Counties in Washington State.

OVC’s mission is to enhance the nation’s capacity to assist crime victims and provide leadership in changing policies and practices to promote justice and healing for all victims of crime. OVC achieves this mission, in part, by administering award programs supported by the federal Crime Victims Fund (CVF) to develop innovative training and technical assistance, and to provide direct services to improve the overall quality of victim assistance.

The overall goal of the Fiscal Year 2019 Tribal Victim Services Set-Aside Program is to provide support to tribal communities to improve services for victims of crime. Under the solicitation, OVC solicited applications for funding to support a comprehensive range of activities including needs assessment, strategic planning, program development and implementation, program expansion, and other activities needed to address the needs of a wide variety of crime victims in tribal communities.

With an award under Purpose Area 2: Coordination and Expansion of Existing Victim Service Program, the program will provide new employment opportunities and will focus on educating the community on Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG) and sex trafficking and ways to prevent perpetrators from preying on victims of trauma. The Office of Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Prevention Program will develop the foundation to build a healthy community through community activities such as developing an office to be able to collect, and handle missing person cases, and work with the authorities to investigate, prosecute, and protect families of that are victims of crime, and provide educational opportunities and community awareness events to locate the missing persons. (CA/NCF)