Parkland Victims Services Inc. recently celebrated 20 years in the community, helping victims of crime go through the process of dealing with the aftermath. The anniversary comes with good news for the program, which will now expand to more communities in the region.
The provincial government is increasing funding to the program by $128,418. Those additional funds will be accompanied by expansion into Canora, Esterhazy, Melville, Moosomin, Wadena and Wynyard RCMP detachments. Cheryl Tiller, Coordinator for Parkland Victims Services Inc. says that the new money will pay for additional staff, and the next step will be to recruit volunteers in each community.
Tiller says that the organization has been trying to expand for a while, and the announcement of the new funding on the anniversary is exciting, both for the staff and the new communities they will now be able to serve, communities which did not have any services prior to this.
"They will have the opportunity to have support from the time of the incident, whether that will be a break-in to a house to a fatal motor vehicle accident to a sexual assault. They will have the opportunity to work with victims services throughout their experience with the criminal justice system," she states.
"We're just that extra helping hand, to be there. Especially since we have a lot of new people in the area who may not have family and friends close by for support, that's where we can come in, to help them through. If they have to be a witness in court, we are there beside them to help them through that. We help them walk through all of those processes and we help them as long as they require our assistance. We make sure though that they are provided access to the appropriate services to help them on their road to wellness."
Tiller says that the biggest challenge in the immediate future will be finding volunteers in the new communities. She invites those interested to call her at 306-786-2406 or call their local RCMP detachment.
