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Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

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Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

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Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

In the Wake of Tragedy, A Domestic Violence Success Story in KY

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Friday, September 25, 2009   

FRANKFORT, KY. - The death of 29-year-old Amanda Ross and subsequent murder charges filed against her ex-fiance and former state lawmaker Steve Nunn has brought new focus to the plight of domestic violence victims. Now, a program that helps those victims change their surroundings and their lives is showing that a fresh start is possible.

Sharon Hays says she was abused by her husband and, like many in her situation, found it difficult to ask for help.

"I wasn't black and blue all the time and I did not fit what, in my mind, was the stereotypical picture of an abused spouse."

With more than a little nudging from friends, Hays found the Kentucky Domestic Violence Association (KDVA), got the counseling and confidence she needed, and, with her two children, left her husband two years ago. She's been enrolled in the group's Individual Development Account (IDA) program, which offers financial education and a two-to-one match of any money participants are able to save.

Mary O'Doherty, KDVA's economic empowerment project director, says 164 survivors are currently in the IDA program and, for those who take full advantage, it can be a life-changer.

"If somebody maximizes the program, they will finish with six thousand dollars; two thousand of their own savings and four thousand in matching funds. In Kentucky, six thousand dollars can be a down-payment on a home."

Hays now has a new place to live and is enrolled in college; all because of a very difficult decision to make a change.

"That was not who I had ever been, that was not who I wanted to be. They helped me to see that it's okay to have some assistance because everybody needs help sometimes."

Funding for KDVA comes from Washington, the Kentucky Housing Corporation and from private interests, such as a recent $15,000 donation from the Verizon Foundation.





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