John Howard pulls the plug on S.T.O.P.
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PRINCE GEORGE – A program that has been working successfully to stop domestic violence before it happens is no longer. The Stop Taking it Out on your Partner, or S.T.O.P., has had its gaming grant application denied.Executive Director for the John Howard Society explains what the program was all about.
“We call it a violence prevention program because it allows individuals involved in toxic relationships the opportunity to come to us and work on those relationships before it turns into a violent relationship,” explains Wayne Hughes, who adds the other treatment and counselling programs being offered can only be accessed after someone is convicted of an assault.
The program was created in Prince George and has been picked up by other John Howard chapters in BC and even Canada. It has been in place for more than 20 years and supporter Sharon Hurd with the Phoenix Transition House says its loss will be acute.
“Let’s see the increase of needs on our already-overloaded RCMP our social services and the children,” says Hurd. “And the way they developed the S.T.O.P. Program, it saves marriages and it saves the future of children.”
