Combating domestic violence

GLENDALE — The Commission on the Status of Women this week agreed to join forces with a newly-formed community organization that has formed to develop more domestic violence resources and public outreach.

The commission has been a staunch supporter of eradicating spousal abuse in the city, so members said joining the Domestic Violence Task Force on Monday was a natural fit.

“This is an attempt to search out the needs of our community and to help the support groups’ work together to provide more and better services to the community,” commission Chairwoman Paula Devine said.

Community leaders and representatives began meeting in January as a taskforce, which is spearheaded by Neighborhood Legal Services of Los Angeles County.

The task force was formed to improve access to critical services for domestic violence victims, said Christine Baboomian, an administrative analyst for the city.

The move comes after the YWCA of Glendale was forced earlier this year to reduce the number of available beds at its 24-hour domestic violence shelter due to budget constraints.

Taskforce members will also focus on educating residents, service providers and community-based organizations about domestic violence, she said.

Several community leaders, including Devine and Commissioner Linda Goodman Pillsbury, attended the initial task force meeting, where they discussed domestic violence in the city and available resources, Baboomian said.

Pillsbury, a clinical social worker, has been attending the monthly meetings at the Neighborhood Legal Services of Los Angeles County office in Glendale.

“I think it is an importance thing for Glendale to be looking at what’s going on with domestic violence because Glendale is a pretty big city and the services have not been sufficient to meet the needs and that’s where this taskforce started,” Pillsbury said.

The taskforce was also formed, she said, out of need for more domestic violence services and in effort to better coordinate assistance.

In the taskforce’s exploratory phase, group members held another two meetings with several local agencies, including the Glendale police, YWCA, PATH Achieve Glendale, Salvation Army and Glendale Memorial Hospital to discuss domestic violence in the city, Baboomian added.

“Along the way the taskforce realized that they could help bridge the gaps between organizations and they could work together to promote each other’s activities, projects and services,” Baboomian said.