CCFV expands to cover both Weston and Crook

Crook County Family Violence and Sexual Assault Services (CCFV) is changing its name to reflect an expansion to its service territory.

The organization will now work under the trade name of Northeast Wyoming Advocacy Resource Center (NEWARC) and will cover both Crook and Weston counties.

“The Attorney General’s Office contracted with CCFV to take over the Weston County program,” says Executive Director Sandy Stevens. “We officially took over on July 1.”

‘Crook County Family Violence, aka NEWARC,’ as it will less formally be known, is this year celebrating 40 years of providing continuous advocacy and critical services to victims and survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking and human trafficking.

NEWARC has assumed Weston County’s family violence and sexual assault service program from former advocate FOCUS (Foundation of Caring, Understanding and Service), which had previously served Weston County since March 29, 1983.

When the Wyoming Attorney General’s Office did not renew its contract with FOCUS, its Division of Victim Services recommended Stevens. It’s not uncommon for Stevens to assist programs while they are lacking a director, she says, and it was a chance to scope things out.

“I worked there as an interim director because they didn’t have a director and our board thought, yes, we could take this on,” she says.

Familiarity with the county and its people has been a benefit during this transition.

“It was a good fit for me to be able to take over because we’re still in the Sixth Judicial District, and what that means is that it’s still the same judges, I already know the county attorneys down there because we work on cases together,” she says.

“Law enforcement is a little different, but I do know a lot of them because I do law enforcement training with all new officers and advanced officers, so I have a pretty good relationship with them to where it’s not just a new director coming in and learning everything, it’s a familiar face.”

Stevens and Kayleigh Gould will together run the combined program, which will continue to offer the same services in both counties, 24 hours a day. Gould, too, knows Weston County well.

“Kayleigh grew up in Weston County and Newcastle, so she’s very familiar with the community and it was very easy to just slide on in without having too much of a disruption in services at all,” Stevens says.

“If anything, it’ll be even better services. It’ll be more accessible and with the backing of a long-term director as well.”

At this time, Stevens will not be hiring a third employee due to potential funding difficulties in the near future.

“Federal funding will be reduced next year by up to 40%, which is a whole position. If I was to hire someone new now, I worry about would I be able to keep them starting July 1 of next year,” she explains.

Combining the two counties is a good opportunity to test out the idea of regionalizing family violence services, she says, which might help after the reduction in funds kicks in.

“Especially the smaller programs, do we need to have two executive directors where one executive director can cover both entities? It’s not that much more work for me: I don’t have to do an additional grant, additional reimbursements, we don’t have to do two sets of payroll liabilities or have two sets of bookkeepers, or do two separate things for our workers comp or unemployment,” she says.

“All those things that come with administering a grant and a nonprofit organization, instead of doing two things there’s just one.”

There will, of course, be an increase to the overall workload, because Stevens and Gould will be doubling their potential cases. It’s important to Stevens and Gould that NEWARC’s clients are given as much help as possible and as much as their office is able to provide.

They’ve already been through enough, Stevens says.

“We always want to make things very accessible and successful,” she says “We really do take our time and advocate for our clients and get them the resources they need.”

The duo knows that this takes the assistance of numerous departments and agencies, each working within its own lane. This was the drive behind their long-term efforts to establish respectful working relationships, Stevens says, and they will be pursuing the same strategy in Weston County.

“Each agency has its own set of procedures, policies, mission statements and state statutes. We try to stay in our own lane and, if we don’t understand why something is happening, we go in and ask them,” she says.

“It’s about acknowledging that there are certain rules they have to follow.”

So far, so good, Stevens says – since July 1, the transition has gone extremely smoothly. She is grateful for the continued support of the state, both counties and all the towns in the areas she serves, all of whom contribute in whatever way they can.

“The Weston County Commissioners have been wonderful, they’ve given us funds. The Town of Newcastle, wonderful, they’ve given us funding,” she says.

“Upton is a smaller town but they have offered us in-kind stuff like an office space if we need one. Everyone has been really welcoming regarding this transition.”

FOCUS’s board of directors will no longer be necessary, so Stevens is hoping to phase representatives for Weston County into the NEWARC board as current directors choose to step down.

To celebrate both the expansion and 40th anniversary, NEWARC will be hosting open houses at its offices in both counties. Anyone interested in finding out more and meeting with staff and the Board of Directors while enjoying refreshments may visit the Newcastle office at 204 West Main Street from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. on September 7 or the Sundance office at 104 N. 5th Street on September 28 between the same hours.

Contact Stevens at 307-283-2415 with any questions or thoughts.