Overview

When issues create an unsafe home environment, Great Circle helps rebuild the lives of women and children through a network of emergency shelter options and mental health services, delivered by highly trained, compassionate staff.

Women’s Crisis Center – in Doniphan

The Crisis Center helps women and their children (up to age 16) escape from domestic violence, sexual assault, dating violence, stalking and other crisis situations. It also helps women and children who find themselves homeless and needing emergency housing.

Within the safe, secure environment, women and children receive:

• Warm beds and hot meals served family style
• Counseling services and other mental health support, including to overcome addictions
• Parenting and nutrition classes
• Clothing and personal care items
• Advocacy support and assistance during legal proceedings
• Housing assistance to end homelessness
• Employment assistance

The Crisis Center also provides case management services and helps clients build life skills, job skills and job readiness, attain educational goals, overcome addictive behaviors, and develop a plan for economic and housing stability. The Center helps with:

• State & federal assistance programs, including Medicaid and SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program), Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI), Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Women, Infants & Children (WIC) nutrition program, and state-paid daycare
• Official documents, including Social Security cards, driver’s license, state ID cards, and birth certificates
• Legal issues, including divorce advice and obtaining restraining orders/orders of protection.
• Medical needs, including immunization records, medical exams and STD/Hepatitis testing
• Housing needs, including application assistance, help with rent, utilities and deposits
• School enrollment for children and educational efforts of mothers
• Transportation to medical/legal appointments and jobs

Great Circle and the Crisis Center’s staff is committed to providing a safe haven for women and children that is free of violence, mental or physical abuse, coercion or intimidation.

Emergency Children’s Shelters – in Poplar Bluff & Springfield

Great Circle operates two emergency children’s shelters to provide safe haven for children removed from the family home for safety reasons or those experiencing a short-term family crisis situation. The shelters serve ages newborn to 18. Children may stay for up to 30 days.

While there, children receive all needed psychological and physical assessments, along with access to counseling, help with schooling and child-oriented activities.

Poplar Bluff: Located at 2701 Holly Trail, it can house a maximum of 9 children.

Springfield (Ozark Family Resource Center): Located at 1212 West Lombard, it can house a maximum of 20 children. This location also works with homeless teens not in foster care and pregnant/parenting teens age 18 and under to provide additional life skill support.

Learn more about the shelters – click here.

Ozark Foothills Child Advocacy Center

Great Circle’s Ozark Foothills Child Advocacy Center (CAC) helps children who have been the victim of child/sexual abuse. The CAC conducts interviews and child assessments, and works with local law enforcement and healthcare professionals as needed. The CAC also provides help and support to non-offending parents and caregivers.