Banking on KC – Jenna Giess of Hope Haven: Breaking the Silence, Restoring Hope
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Kelly Scanlon:
Welcome to Banking on KC. I'm your host, Kelly Scanlon. Thank you for joining us. With us on this episode is Jenna Giess, the executive director of Hope Haven of Cass County. Welcome, Jenna.
Jenna Giess:
Thank you for having me.
Kelly Scanlon:
Tell us about some of your core services.
Jenna Giess:
Yeah. So Hope Haven is an emergency program for victims of domestic and sexual violence. So our core services include our emergency shelter, open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. We also provide a crisis hotline, which the number is 816-380-4663, and that's also 24 hours a day, seven days a week. And for those who are looking to go into our programs, we have case management, court advocacy, criminal justice advocacy. So a survivor can come in and they can tell us basically what they need, and we can help them break down the barriers that are due to domestic and sexual violence.
Kelly Scanlon:
So you can introduce them to the services that meet their specific situations. It's not a one-size-fits-all offering that you do.
Jenna Giess:
That's correct. All of our services are completely free, and they're also optional to that survivor. So they pick the services that are the best for them because they know. They're the experts of their life, the experts of their story. So they know what they need to do to get back on their feet again, to really transform from that victimization into the person that they really want to become.
Kelly Scanlon:
One of the programs that you have that I thought was really interesting, it's called Bring Your Pets to Safety. Tell us about that and why you offer that.
Jenna Giess:
We have this wonderful program, it's called Paw Haven, and it's so near and dear to my heart. It was one of the first grants that I ever wrote, because for three years I sat and I provided services to so many children who told me, "My dad did this to my pets." And they were just so horrific. And they never really knew what they were saying to me, but those stories, they never leave you. For so many years, we couldn't do anything. So we created Paw Haven so that survivors and victims can flee with their pets to safety. So you got one dog, bring it. You got two dogs, four cats, bring them to Hope Haven because safety is really for the whole family.
Kelly Scanlon:
I've read that sometimes it's a barrier for people to come and seek out their own safety because they don't want to leave their pets behind. Even if they haven't been harmed, they still don't want to leave their pets behind, and it becomes a barrier for getting their own support.
Jenna Giess:
Yeah. In fact, over 90% of the victims who have taken our anonymous survey since 2016 have said they wouldn't have left their victimization and fled without their pet. And as an animal lover myself, I deeply understand.
Kelly Scanlon:
What's one thing about domestic violence that people don't talk about enough?
Jenna Giess:
There's so many aspects, but the one thing that I'm constantly sharing about is it happens to men too. So often we think about that victim of violence being a woman, and there's just so many other forms of domestic violence.
Kelly Scanlon:
Elder abuse too.
Jenna Giess:
Oh, elder abuse. Yeah. Since we've been raising so much awareness about domestic and sexual violence these last few years, we've been into nursing homes more times than I've ever could imagined. We receive phone calls from everybody. And that's the one thing about domestic violence, is it doesn't discriminate. It doesn't discriminate. It doesn't matter if you're the richest person on earth, the poorest person, homeless, fancy house, domestic violence can happen to you. And that's why we're really happy to be here and to be able to support survivors. And so we just have to remember that survivors come in all shapes and forms and sizes and all genders. And so we just want to be there for that survivor when they're ready for us.
Kelly Scanlon:
Talk to us about some of your outreach programs and their impact.
Jenna Giess:
Yes. So if you don't want or need emergency shelter, then you can come in and serve into our outreach program. So what that is, it's exactly the same services you'd receive residential. So you could come in and you can seek economic and housing services, which are part of our case management. You can receive budgeting help, you can join in a multitude of support groups that we host weekly. You can go to free license counseling. So we offer that in-person at first. But then, say it's more convenient, you could go virtual. And again, all of these services are 100% free to survivors in our community.
Kelly Scanlon:
Sometimes survivors are reluctant to get assistance because they're worried that the abuser will come after them or retaliate in some way. How do you overcome that fear?
Jenna Giess:
Yeah, and that's a really valid fear because the most dangerous time in a survivor's life is when they're actually fleeing that abuse. That moment that they leave is actually one of the most dangerous times in their life. So all services, even our crisis hotline, is 100% confidential. All of the advocates, volunteers, anybody who comes into Hope Haven to provide services have gone through 48 hours of state standard confidentiality training. I could tell you, they've gone through 90 hours of Hope Haven training, which deeply includes our confidentiality. The people that are serving survivors, we understand confidentiality, we live confidentiality, and we know how important it is because it saves lives.
Kelly Scanlon:
How do you approach community education? I mean, a lot of times it's a family member or a friend who finally convinces someone to seek help. So what is the importance of approaching the community about the issue? And then what is that educational outreach like?
Jenna Giess:
Community outreach is essential to the work that we're doing here at Hope Haven. Any chance that we get to be on a podcast like this one or to come speak to a small group, a large group, I'll be there. Just reach out. We actually have a link on our website where you can go in and you can email me directly and tell me about your group and how you want the conversation. I will literally tailor that educational piece to you, to your family, to your church group, whatever group it may be because it is essential that we continue to talk about what's going on in our community so that people really understand what's happening and that we can hopefully prevent the cycle of violence from happening in the future.
Kelly Scanlon:
Do you ever work with businesses?
Jenna Giess:
We work with any business who will let us in to talk. We collaborate with many, many community partners. We collaborate with many of the domestic violence shelters here in Kansas City. So say we're full and we don't have any space available, but Hope House does in Independence. And so we will call on our crisis hotline and work with them to get our client in there. And say maybe Cass County isn't what's right for the survivor, or say that their abuser found them at our shelter. Now we have to move that person so that they can stay in a confidential, safe place. So maybe we call Rose Brooks here in Kansas City and transfer them there, where they can receive those services. So we really collaborate with all other partners because there's not enough services to go around. We'll never have enough services, unfortunately.
And we also collaborate with United Way. We're part of the Impact 100. We collaborate with Kansas City Medicine Cabinet, which I believe they may have a new title now. And so we'll collaborate with any organizations. We could collaborate with banks to provide financial information for our survivors. So whoever can contribute to survivors' lives, we will literally partner with because that's what's right. And the more people that we get involved in this mission, the more people that we get on board, the better our lives are going to be, and the more safer our communities will be.
Kelly Scanlon:
How many people can you serve?
Jenna Giess:
So we can serve unlimited amounts in our outreach program. So some of our outreach clients, they need that person to go to court with them. So every Wednesday, you'll find us at an adult abuse docket. Some people may need the case management, or we have programs like rapid rehousing where, say, you're homeless due to domestic violence. We can actually pay deposits and first month's rent and help you get into that permanent, safe, and stable housing. And so we can serve inside our shelter around 30 survivors. We house either one family or one single in every single one of our rooms. So we will never put a family with an individual or a stranger. We always want to keep that separate space because we believe that that's the best way to serve people so that they can heal.
Kelly Scanlon:
So the people who do come and seek shelter within your walls, how long do they typically stay and what is the basis for moving them into the next phase?
Jenna Giess:
So typically a family and an individual will stay in our shelter around 48 to 50 days. When they come into the shelter and they're starting to feel safe, they start interacting in case management, court advocacy, whatever programs that they need. And immediately, they'll start saving their money. They'll start finding where they want to live, finding that childcare. Whatever their barriers are to safe and stable housing, we'll start working through those. So as long as somebody is working through their barriers, there really is no time limit. They may need six months, they may need eight months, they may need a year. The waiting list for some housing, it can be long. So it's really up to that individual. And as long as they continue on their plan to success, there is no-
Kelly Scanlon:
It's 30 days, you need to be moving along.
Jenna Giess:
No way. I don't think any shelter would do that. It's really what that person needs, but 48 days seems to be that sweet spot where somebody who already may have a little bit of money or has a great job can really put that money in their savings, live in that shelter at no cost, and then find their permanent housing. But they usually stay, and they go from residential to outreach services, and they continue on that same path. So if they're budgeting, they're going to continue budgeting with their case manager, but maybe they're not going to do in-person because they might not be in Harrisonville or in Cass County, and they may be doing virtual case management. So we'll really work with that individual to make sure their needs are being met where they're at.
Kelly Scanlon:
You mentioned that there are no socioeconomic boundaries. There are no gender boundaries, age boundaries for domestic and sexual abuse. How prevalent is it in our society?
Jenna Giess:
Statistics say one in four women will be a victim of intimate partner domestic violence by the age they're 24, and then one in eight men will be a victim of domestic violence. And those statistics are always changing, but they're never getting better. They always seem to be changing, not in our favor. And so I just wonder why. And so I'm always saying, "What do we need to do to change this?" What do we need to do to make sure that ... That kid that's seeing the cycle of violence repeat itself over and over, what can we do to really enhance their lives?
So what Hope Haven does to provide just some prevention, it doesn't seem like it's enough, is that during February we go into the schools that we're allowed to go into. So some schools say, "No, thank you," but some schools do allow us to, and we'll set up a table and we'll just really talk about dating violence and what that looks like and what you could do to get help, and how we have the crisis hotline and you don't have to identify yourself to even call. Anybody can call that number. And so it's just so important to prevent that cycle of violence because that's the only way we're going to make this safer community.
Kelly Scanlon:
And you bring up something important there. It's a cycle. When children witness it, it becomes normalized to a certain degree and they think that's what life is like. The other statistic that you hear about, it takes on average about seven times for a victim of abuse to leave before they finally have truly left. So talk to us about why.
Jenna Giess:
I sure hate that statistic. I mean, since the day I started, that statistic has been engraved into all of us advocates. And I think it's engraved in our brains because we have to understand why people go back. And there's so many barriers, especially in today's world, that weren't there even 10 years ago. And those barriers sometimes are really hard to overcome.
So we watch women and men and children come in and they have these barriers and they're working towards them. And sometimes, even though we don't want it, it becomes too much, too overwhelming. They go back for so many reasons. Sometimes they couldn't leave their pets. Sometimes they financially don't think they can do it. But any which way, when they go back, it is devastating for us.
So for our emergency shelter, we always say success is one night safe in a bed. And so we call it a safe bed night. In October, we had our gala and I stood up and I ran the number, and I was floored to find out that since my first day, Hope Haven had already served over 70,000 safe bed nights. And so you just think about each year, it's so hard to watch these victims, but then you see the impact of Hope Haven, the impact of all the other organizations in this mission together, and how we partner just to save lives.
Kelly Scanlon:
That's remarkable. It's a number that you don't want to have to share, but the fact that you're able to do it along with some of the other organizations that you mentioned earlier, there's absolutely the need. For people who are listening who might suspect that a friend, family member, a neighbor, are experiencing this kind of violence, what's the best way to support them?
Jenna Giess:
The best way to support them is to ask them how they could be supported. So many people have all these predisposed ideas on what this person needs, what they need, but the truth is that the victim or the survivor, they're the experts of their own lives and they know what they need. So providing the number for Hope Haven and saying, "Hey, this place can help you. This is exactly where you can go when you're ready." But also saying, "Hey, I can provide you that space," as much space as you can provide them and what they need in that space. And they're the only ones that can tell you.
But number one thing is that I know so many people, and they mean it in good intention, want to go help their friend. They want to help their friend. I mean, I've been there before, but please leave it up to the professionals because the things that we learn, the trainings that we have to attend, I mean, we really are the experts of domestic and sexual violence. And we can help you talk about the resources. You can call our crisis hotline and talk about your friend, or your friend can call and talk about themselves.
So just reaching out to professionals and not trying to do it on your own is the number one advice I can give everybody because time and time again, I've seen, "Hey, I went to my friend's house and then my abuser showed up with a gun. I went to my mom's house, and then he burnt the house down." And it's nonstop. Please seek professional help for domestic and sexual violence.
Kelly Scanlon:
What's a myth about domestic violence survivors that needs to be busted?
Jenna Giess:
The myth is that domestic violence is only physical. There are just so many aspects of domestic violence. There's this wonderful ... I encourage everybody to Google it. The Wheel of Violence, and it talks about educational, financial, how people use children and animals for domestic violence. So often, that emotional trauma can hurt so much more than the physical. And I've seen it time and time again, and I just really wish that people would just validate all types of domestic violence so that they don't think physical is the only form.
Kelly Scanlon:
It sounds like, from the way you described this, that Hope Haven isn't just a shelter. It's not just a physical place to go. It's really a community lifeline. What role does the broader Cass County community, or even the Kansas City Metro community, play in supporting survivors? And how can individuals in the community get involved to support your mission?
Jenna Giess:
There's so many ways to get involved. You can go online and you can volunteer for us. You can come to one of our community events. You can just really go out and tell survivors that we exist. So often, people will just casually bring up Hope Haven in a conversation, and then all of a sudden they know three people who need it. And so although you think, "Oh, I heard about Hope Haven today. I'm just going to tuck it in my back pocket," sometime, if you could just share, even today ... Every person who hears this, if they could say, "Hey, I heard about a domestic and sexual violence program." You don't have to even say, "Hope Haven." Somebody is going to be like, "Oh my gosh, I know somebody who needs that." Because unfortunately, everybody listening here, everybody who's not listening, we all know someone who's experienced domestic or sexual violence. I hate it, but it's true. And so if we talk about it, we can get those survivors the services they need because there are certain ways to heal from domestic violence that it's hard to do on your own.
Kelly Scanlon:
As you look ahead ... You mentioned that unfortunately the situation isn't getting better. It's getting more grim. So there's a lot of work still to be done. What are your goals for the future of Hope Haven, and how can our community support your initiatives?
Jenna Giess:
We're in the very beginning stages of a capital campaign. We would really like to bring a shelter to Belton, Missouri. Right now, we're in Harrisonville, so we see a lot of barriers for our clients. So looking out for our capital campaign. Again, sharing the awareness. Coming to volunteer if you have a moment, but also donating to these survivors so they can get those plane tickets, they can get the train tickets, and we don't have to think twice about purchasing those because we have donors supporting those survivors every day.
Kelly Scanlon:
You mentioned your website, which is-
Jenna Giess:
Hopehavenmo.org.
Kelly Scanlon:
Okay. Hopehavenmo.org. You can go out there, you can read about the services, you can find out ways that you can help to support the organization.
Jenna Giess:
And one other thing I'd like to add is that Hope Haven is part of a qualified domestic violence shelter here in Missouri. So we have 70% tax credits through the Department of Social Services, so we can offer them to individuals. They're great for donations and they can help victims get on an airplane and find safety.
Kelly Scanlon:
Jenna, thank you so much for all that you and your team do, not only for the support that you give once they are connected to you, but for the outreach that you do so that these people don't feel like they have to suffer in silence. We appreciate it.
Jenna Giess:
It's my pleasure.
Joe Close:
This is Joe Close, president of Country Club Bank. Thank you to Jenna Giess for being our guest on this episode of Banking on KC. Hope Haven of Cass County provides vital support to survivors of domestic and sexual violence through its 24/7 emergency shelter, crisis hotline, and outreach programs. Beyond immediate assistance, Hope Haven offers personalized services such as case management, court advocacy, and counseling, empowering survivors to break free from the cycle of violence and rebuild their lives.
The work of Hope Haven reminds us that creating a safer community requires more than just awareness. It demands action, compassion, and a commitment to standing beside survivors at every step of their journey. Through education and outreach, Jenna and her team are changing lives and fostering a future where safety and dignity are within reach for all. At Country Club Bank, where one of our core values is compassion, we applaud organizations that empower individuals and families to achieve stability and hope. Thanks for tuning in this week. We're banking on you, Kansas City. Country Club Bank, member FDIC.