HARTFORD, Conn. (WTIC Radio) - The Hartford-based advocacy group Mothers United Against Violence has received $300,000 in federal funding for a project that is geared towards helping victims of violence with legal proceedings and their mental health.
The Victim Impact Project will provide support for those who are struggling from trauma and PTSD that are a result of gun violence, MUAV Director of Project Development and Management Deborah Davis said.
"This is important because from the incident, which is the injury, there's trauma. Then to the hospital, there's trauma, and then to the courthouse, there's trauma. Then to closing that case and finding resolve... that's another trauma," Davis said.
The funds will also serve families who need help navigating the criminal justice system through the project.
MUAV Co-Founder and Program Director Henrietta Beckman explained that resources are needed to support families through the court system because many are unfamiliar with the process.
"When I went through the criminal justice system, I was full of nerves. I didn't know what to expect. You go into the courthouse and you see all these people who are going through different cases and, it's like, you don't know what to do. So, this will be a great avenue to help each other get through the criminal justice system," Beckman said.
U.S Senator Chris Murphy stressed that the grant was awarded to MUAV because the merits of the group's application were impossible to ignore.
"The work that you have been doing with almost no funding, with almost no support, has already been saving life after life after life," Murphy said.
The group's work not only helps struggling families, Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin said, but it also helps the community at large.
"They save lives because by doing that work," Bronin said, "they help break cycles of violence."
MUAV Co-Founder and Executive Director Rev. Henry Brown called the funding both a blessing and just the beginning.
"This is only a small drop in the bucket. There's more resources needed. There's more money needed," Brown said.
U.S. Senators Murphy and Richard Blumenthal as well as Congressman John Larson assured the group that there's a strong chance they'll be getting more federal funding in the future given their crucial work and its positive impact on the community.