Gift will provide support for women and children who have survived domestic violence in NWA
FAYETTEVILLE—The Bank of Arkansas recently donated $10,000 to Peace at Home Family Shelter as part of their pledge for the Safe Shelter, New Hope Campaign. The campaign has helped fund the new Donald W. Reynolds facility.
(From left) Deborah Thomas, President, Peace at Home Board of Directors; Judith Selle, CEO of Peace at Home; and Jeffrey Dunn, Chairman, President and CEO of Bank of Arkansas
“We are very pleased that Bank of Arkansas was willing to help with this Campaign,” said Amy Michaud, Development Director for Peace at Home. “The new Donald W. Reynolds Shelter & Program Facility has helped us serve more women and children as they seek peaceful, independent lives. We are grateful to all of our donors who helped make the dream of a state-of-the-art facility shelter a reality.”
Peace at Home moved into the Donald W. Reynolds facility on Dec. 17, 2008. The new building has allowed the shelter to expand from six bedrooms to nine and increase capacity from 14 to 35. The facility was built from the ground up thanks to the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation and donors from around Northwest Arkansas and beyond. Since moving into the new building, Peace at Home has seen a 70 percent increase in clients over one year ago.
“Bank of Arkansas is committed to helping families in need and we are very happy to provide some sort of comfort to those affected by domestic violence. Whether it’s giving books for the Children’s Education Center or money to the program facility, every little bit
helps change the future for domestic violence victims,” said Jeff Dunn, Bank of Arkansas CEO & President.
“Over the past three years, Bank of Arkansas has donated over $165,000 to charitable organizations throughout the state and we are proud to be a part of this fine establishment. In these uncertain economic times, donations to so many non-profit organizations, such as Peace at Home, are down significantly and we are pleased to step up and make significant contributions in communities throughout Arkansas when organizations needs are greater than that have been in recent years,” said Dunn.
Domestic violence is a serious and sometimes deadly cycle of violence that costs Americans over $5.5 billion a year in health care costs alone. There are over 6.6 million children, in the United States, living with domestic violence. A child’s exposure to the father abusing the mother is the strongest risk factor for transmitting violent behavior from one generation to the next, according to the American Psychological Association, Report of the American Psychological Association Presidential Task Force on Violence and the Family, 1996.
Established in 1977, Peace at Home is Arkansas’ oldest shelter for domestic violence survivors. Their mission is to END domestic violence. They offer emergency shelter, a crisis line, advocacy, job training, and bi-lingual services. In 2007, the organization had an astonishing 78% success rate for families moving onto safe and successful lives. Last year, they had 3,936 safe nights for women and children.
For more information, visit: www.peaceathomeshelter.org or www.bankofarkansas.com.
Bank of Arkansas, N.A., is a subsidiary of BOK Financial Corporation, a financial services company that provides commercial and consumer banking, investment and trust services, mortgage origination and servicing, and an electronic funds transfer network. Other holdings include Bank of Albuquerque, N.A., Bank of Arizona, N.A., Bank of Oklahoma, N.A., Bank of Texas, N.A., Colorado State Bank and Trust, N.A., broker-dealer BOSC, Inc., Cavanal Hill Investment Management, Southwest Trust Co. and the TransFund electronic funds network. Shares of BOK Financial are traded on the NASDAQ under the symbol BOKF. For more information, visit www.bokf.com.