County approves intervention program funding

By MorinvilleNews.com Staff

Sturgeon County – Council unanimously approved granting $5,000 to the Sturgeon Family Violence Intervention Program. The grant will assist the Sturgeon Family Violence Team in covering a $10,000 operating budget shortfall for program sessions starting in October and running until February of 2011.

The Sturgeon Family Violence Intervention Team is an inter-agency committee who collaborate in order to provide resources for Sturgeon County Families impacted by family violence.

For the past three years, the group has been operating an educational program with a psycho-therapy component for victims and offenders. The 15-week long program has a capacity to accommodate 12 participants, and the organization currently has eight victims and an additional eight offenders on the waiting list for the fall sessions.

In past years, the program was funded through two provincial grants; however, grant streamlining by the province this spring left the intervention program’s funding in jeopardy.

Sturgeon County’s $5,000 contribution towards the program will come from the County’s existing Family and Community Support Services (FCSS) special projects budget.