Nancy Sheehan

NANCY SHEEHAN

Nancy Sheehan, Procurement Officer with Stony Brook University Hospital’s Purchasing Department, has volunteered her time with the Suffolk County Coalition Against Domestic Violence (SCCADV) for more than four years. She became involved with SCCADV after reading about United We Serve, President Obama’s nationwide service initiative.

After a year of extensive training, Nancy became a hotline operator for the coalition. Once a week, she triages calls from victims of domestic violence. She addresses the callers’ needs and provides services including counselling and a place in the shelter when necessary.

Many of the calls come directly from the police precinct, from officers who are responding to a domestic violence call. They call the hotline operator to speak to the person, tell them about SCCADV’s services and place them in a shelter for that night or however long it takes. The coalition offers many other services to victims of domestic violence such as courtroom advocacy, legal assistance, employment advocacy, counselling, etc.

“It’s more than just a shelter,” says Nancy. “It’s helping women move onto the next stage of their life.”