October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month and the Children and Family Center of Northwest Missouri is partnering with local hairstylists to raise awareness on domestic violence.

The stylists participating in Maryville are:

• Tina Dawson at Total Image, 108 East Torrance Street, is giving a 10 percent discount on services, excluding tanning, for customers who wear purple. Appointments only.

• Krystal Spencer from O’Hair Salon, 1210 South Main Street, is doing purple hair extensions with the proceeds going to CFC. Purple extensions only and by appointment only. 

• Ashli Linhart and Regis SmartStyle, 1605 South Main Street, will hand out CFC brochures and cards. Their staff also opened their doors to a DV101 training led by Meghann Kosman, court/victim advocate, and Moriah Mullins, intern. 

• Brenda Hammett at The Haircut Place, 1626 East First Street, will be handing out magnets with CFC information. 

• Joni Sherlock at Salon 1, 1122 South Main Street, has donated free haircuts to some victims of domestic violence who seek CFC’s services. CFC records all who seek services each week, then draws a random name at the end of each week for a free haircut with Sherlock. 

This collaboration is possible because of the efforts of CFC Executive Director Linda Mattson in speaking with the salons several years ago. Through that networking, conversations evolved about how many hairstylists have customers who confide in them about personal things, domestic violence sometimes being one of them.

“Then, we offered support and training to those salons,” Kosman said. “Now, we’re partnering again to keep talking about an important issue.”

Kosman and Mullins have videoed conversations with the stylists and are sharing snippets on the CFC Facebook and Twitter pages. The full video will be published at the end of October.

“Our services remain free and confidential to victims of domestic violence and sexual assault,” Kosman said. “We’re here just to listen, provide resources, validate, help process, action plan and just believe survivors.”

The Children and Family Center located at 1220 East Second Street, Maryville, provided 3,227 direct services in 2018. These were:

• 220 total clients of which 165 were female, 19 males and 36 children.

• 84 crisis intervention services

• 2,063 case management services

• 196 court advocacy services

• 37 clients for 614 bed nights

• 135 support groups held and 35 groups attended

• 104 calls received on the 24-hour crisis hotline

• 13 hospital/medical advocacy services

• 18 therapy/client counseling services

• 1,454 transitional housing bed

• 76 trainings given to 1,830 individuals

• 138 volunteers for 2,374 hours.

For more information on CFC, call 660.562.2320. For the 24-hour crisis hotline, call 866.382.7867.