The Retreat—eastern Long Island’s only dedicated domestic violence services agency—mission is to provide safety, shelter, and support for victims of domestic abuse and to break the cycle of family violence.   

Over the last five years, The Retreat has experienced a 75% increase in requests for services to our 24-hour hotline.  In August 2015, we received 32 hotline calls in one day, a record number.

In response to increased requests for services, The Retreat has been forced to implement for the first time ever, a wait list for our legal advocacy program, set time limits for counseling services, and turn down community and school requests for education about domestic/dating violence. 

The Suffolk County Legislature has been pivotal in providing support, both financially and energetically at the community level, for our life-saving work with victims of domestic violence.  As domestic violence is a public safety issue, the work we have done together has saved and/or enhanced the physical and emotional well-being of countless residents of Suffolk County and has helped us work to prevent future abuse and to improve the health, safety, and quality of life of our region. 

At a time when heightened national media attention to abuse is giving more of our local residents the courage to ask for help, we don’t want any request to meet a closed door or wait list.

At this time, The Retreat is requesting that, instead of cutting our funding, the Suffolk County Legislature increase funding by $50,000 to meet the increased demand for services in the 2016 Operating Budget. Please help us meet the increased demand for our critical services and ensure that victims, who have had the courage to finally reach out for assistance, do receive immediate and comprehensive crisis intervention services.  This goal is within our collective reach.