Staff
The Atikokan Crisis Centre is on the hunt for a new name, and is hoping district residents will help out with suggestions that better reflect the work the centre does to stop violence against women and their children.
“We just don’t think that the ‘Atikokan Crisis Centre’ reflects what we do,” Donna Kroocmo, the centre’s executive director, explained as to why they are looking to change their name.
“We’re looking for anything that is just more reflective and less specific,” Kroocmo said, giving “haven house safe shelter for women and children” as an example from off the top of her head.
The women’s shelter in Kenora, which was renamed “Saakaate House” a few years ago, is another example of the sort of new name the Atikokan Crisis Centre is looking for, she added.
“Just something that doesn’t use the word ‘Atikokan’ in the title,” she noted.
“I think the misconception is we’re just for Atikokan, so it needs to be changed, for sure,” she stressed.
“This is a battle that we’ve had ever since the place opened.”
In some cases, they’ve spoken to women in Big Grassy and Nestor Falls who were under the impression they would have to go to the women’s shelter in Kenora.
“We do provide service,” Kroocmo remarked, noting the centre’s toll free line (1-800-465-3348) is available throughout the district.
“We have counselling groups in Fort Frances that are held once a week,” she noted. “We have outreach, we do child witness programs throughout the Kenora-Rainy River region, actually the whole district.
“So we’re a lot broader than just Atikokan, we cover a lot more territory.
“A lot of people don’t know that,” Kroocmo conceded, stressing transportation is not an issue since the centre will use taxis, bus lines, and the help of the police to bring people to the centre at a moment’s nice if necessary.
Having the word “crisis” in its name also can create misconceptions about the work the shelter does, Kroocmo added, noting it can imply their services only are for women who are facing physical abuse.
“We had a women [in her 40s] come in—this was probably about two years ago now—and she had to be one of the most severely emotionally and verbally abused women that we’ve come across,” she said.
“She kept on saying, ‘I didn’t think I could call because I didn’t have any bruises, he never hit me.’”
There doesn’t have to be bruises for it to be abuse, Kroocmo stressed, adding it’s important that this message, as well as what the centre does, gets out to the public.
“I don’t think we provide enough education,” she admitted, critically reflecting on the job the centre has done over its years.
“Because if we’ve got women coming in that are 40-something years old and don’t understand that they can access the shelter due to verbal abuse, we’re not doing our job.”
The name change is just one of the measures the centre is taking to raise awareness.
“We’re also looking at getting a new billboard erected in Rainy River,” Kroocmo noted.
“We have two on either side of Fort Frances now, but we need one in the far west to let those people know that we’re here for them.”
As well, the centre always is willing to visit community organizations, such as schools, to provide education on abuse, Kroocmo added, such as through showing the new professionally-produced video, “Not a Loliday,” created by Patricia Lampkin.
The deadline for name suggestions is Oct. 23.
Kroocmo then will compile all the submissions, which will be looked at by members of the shelter’s board at it next meeting slated for Oct. 27, when they will make their decision.
While not required, people also are welcome to submit logo designs to go with their name suggestion.
Suggestions can be submitted by mailing them to Name Change, P.O. Box 818, Atikokan, Ont., P0T 1C0.
