The Stop the Violence Conference returns to Springfield, providing resources and education on domestic violence.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (KY 3) – The Stop the Violence Conference returns to Springfield on Monday.

It is hosted by a variety of partners to talk about the status and resources of domestic violence in our community.

“This is due to an increase in domestic violence incidents in our community. So, the first conference was in 2013, and we are very fortunate to have some really great sponsors and planning committee members to help bring awareness to this issue and to be able to host this conference free of charge for community members,” said Kristen Snell, Director of Engagement and Partnerships at Harmony House.

Registration is required for the conference. It will take place at the eFactory on Jefferson on Monday at 8am.

Snell says this is very important to community members.

“We always say that an educated community is a safer community. So, the more we can talk about this issue, the more awareness we will bring and the more safe spaces we will create in the community for victims and survivors to speak out,” Snell said.

Springfield-Greene County has one of the highest rates of domestic violence in the state. In 2022 Springfield Police Department Almost 2,500 cases of domestic violence have been registered.

“Springfield, Greene County, has one of the highest rates of domestic violence in the state of Missouri. It is difficult to determine the exact cause, whether it is domestic violence incidents or more people reporting these incidents, but we are fortunate to be in a community that is very cooperative. So we have a lot of people coming to the table to solve this problem,” Snell said.

There are many partnerships in Greene County to address this issue.

“We have agencies like Harmony House. We also have the Greene County Family Justice Center, which is a multidisciplinary team of different local agencies located in one location where victims can access multiple services in one location, eliminating the need to travel across town to different agencies. We also have a center for helping victims and a center for protecting children’s rights. We have several agencies in the city that regularly come to the table to solve this problem,” Snell said.

At the conference, a variety of issues will be discussed with participants.

“There will be knowledge that may be able to be applied by other agencies or just the community learning about different dynamics of domestic violence, which may help them more quickly recognize the signs of someone they may know. Additionally, we have a group that will be talking about prevention education in the community and how the community can get involved to help us spread the word,” Snell said.

Snell encourages everyone, whether you attend the conference or not, to educate yourself about domestic violence.

“The more educated we are, the more able we will be to support survivors. So, whether someone is disclosing for the first time or maybe they’ve disclosed before in the past, we want to be able to help them through what that journey looks like for them, whether it’s a breakup, the more support we we provide. give survivors a better chance to break this cycle of violence,” Snell said.

If you or someone you know is suffering from domestic violence, you can reach Harmony House by phone or live chat 24/7. You can find this information Here.

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