A new facility in the heart of downtown Homestead hopes to better connect South Dade residents to resources about child abuse, domestic violence and sexual assault.

Two Miami-Dade nonprofits are teaming up to open what’s called the “Healing Sanctuary” and expand their resources into an underserved part of Florida’s largest county.

Kristi Housea child rights center that coordinates legal, medical and social services for child victims, and MUJEROr Women United in Justice, Education, and Reforma unique agency for survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault in South Dade, are the two organizations leading the project.

“Our goal is to create a full-service site that will meet all of a family’s needs,” said Susan J. Rubio-Riverra, founder and executive director of MUJER. “I’ve always said, if we can’t provide it, MUJER, then our partners will because that’s how we work in Deep South Dade.

The 31,000-square-foot Homestead property was once the area’s first Baptist church and then a Montessori school. Today it is becoming a resource center where MUJER, Kristi House, of Miami Dade County Coordinated Victim Assistance Center and other partner organizations looking to open space in South Dade will be able to reach more people in the area affected by trauma, abuse and violence.

“Due to the demographics of the community, and since the early 1950s, this area was comprised primarily of migrant farm workers and immigrants,” Rubio-Riverra said. “There’s always been a particular need for people, especially now, for people who fear authority and who can’t attend traditional programs or mainstream programs.”

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MUJER is one of only two certified rape crisis centers in Miami-Dade County, handling all sexual assault calls south of Kendall Drive.

People like Patricia, who recently left an abusive marriage with her five children, currently rely on MUJER’s services. WLRN is using only Patricia’s first name to protect her identity.

Patricia and her older daughter receive individual therapy, and Patricia attends weekly support group sessions where she says she has found a community of women who support each other.

“We have a great time together,” she said. “As women, we have endured critical moments that we keep quiet about and are silenced because of fear and shame of what others might say. »

But at MUJER, where she also receives help applying for a scholarship to enter the medical field, Patricia has found a sense of peace and support that she hopes other women will be attracted to the new facility.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new $5.1 million facility was held on November 1, but the organizations hope to be fully moved in by June of next year.

The project was funded by a grant from Miami Foundation Open for Business Program as well as a loan from Fredrick A. DeLuca Foundation.

It was born from the desire of MUJER, which has been serving South Dade for just under three decades, to expand from a small house in Camp Redlands and Kristi House to meet the growing demand for services therapeutics for children. in their satellite office in Homestead.

Kristi House’s Homestead location opened in 2018, but began to become overwhelmed over the years as more people came seeking services.

“It’s packed,” said Amanda Altman, CEO of Kristi House.

But with the Healing Sanctuary, Kristi House plans to hire more therapists, operational staff and a clinical supervisor to expand its reach.

“There is a huge need in the deep south of Miami-Dade County,” Altman said. “This is unfortunately a very underserved part of the community. We are all doing him a great disservice.

Altman also said the sanctuary would allow Kristi House to strengthen its human trafficking prevention program, Gold Project.

Currently, trafficking survivors and at-risk children receive mental health support, life skills classes, and educational enrichment at their Little Haiti shelter. Children in the South Dade program are bused to the center and back.

“Basically, it’s a three-hour trip,” she said. “So I’m really looking forward to hopefully being able to have a satellite of this human trafficking program…so the kids don’t have to come all the way here.”

The Healing Sanctuary is actively seeking to accept other nonprofits with similar missions in the space.

“We don’t need all this space,” Altman said. “We are looking to build a community of services that we can offer to residents of the Deep South. »

WLRN’s Sherrilyn Cabrera contributed to this report.

Resources:

National Domestic Violence Hotline: (1-800) 799-7233

National Human Trafficking Hotline: (1-888) 373-7888

National Sexual Assault Hotline: (1-800) 656-4673

To report a suspicion abuse in Florida: (1-800) 96-ABUS

MUJERSexual Violence Support Hotline: (305) 763-2459