Starting in July, 2017, Saheli is the recipient of funds to expand and improve new programs to help South Asian families affected by intimate partner and domestic violence. Saheli was fortunate to receive funding for three years in a very competitive bidding process. We thank Ms. Debra Robbins of Jane Doe and Sue Chandler of DOVE for their encouragement and support in writing a strong application. We thank Ms Quynh Dang of the Department of Public Health for guiding us to work as state contractors.
Funds support the salaries of five part-time advocates. Saheli appointed five domestic violence advocates between July 1 and September 11; they are working hard to increase outreach, streamline the helpline and improve violence response services. The staff speak over seven South Asian languages, and all but one, was born in a South Asian country. Call them for help, support, resources and cultural responsiveness at the number shown below. Call Saheli for free language help at anytime. Walk in to the Saheli office on 11 Bedford Street, Burlington, any weekday between 11 am to 4 pm to receive free, confidential services. We are on the 350 busline, and the nearest T station is Alewife on the Red line. All services are very confidential and your privacy is of the utmost concern to us.
Staff now include:
Rita Shah, Family Services Coordinator, Boston, Cambridge and surrounding towns
Salita Mehta, Senior Domestic Violence Advocate, Office Manager
Lata Rao, Senior Domestic Violence Advocate, Boston, Cambridge and surrounding towns
Renu Tewarie, Domestic Violence Advocate, South Shore
Usha Verma, Domestic Violence Advocate, Shrewsbury and Worcester
Contact them: leave a message at the helpline number 1-866-472-4354 or write to: info@saheliboston.org
In addition to this expanded team of staff advocates Saheli now has two co-executive directors:
Savitha Rajiv and Nadia Madden who are trained to provide domestic violence response services. Call them at the number above.
Saheli also has volunteer domestic violence response advocates, including:
Gouri Banerjee, Bangla speaker, Rajoo Ananth, Tamil and Telegu, Tanvi Devimane, Gujarati and Usha Vakil, Hindi. Call them at the number above.
