Times Observer photo by Jeff Tome Alexis Fetzeck, A Safe Place executive director, is pictured with a chart featuring domestic violence statistics.

Nobody knows what happens behind closed doors, and many things are simply not talked about. Domestic violence is often one of those things.

Domestic violence is a pattern of abusive behavior in any relationship that is used by one partner to gain or maintain power and control over another intimate partner, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

“They say it takes seven times for a victim to leave their offender and that is absolutely true,” said Alexis Fetzeck, executive director of A Safe Place in Warren. “You might have someone reach out to an organization like ours and three years later they are with the same offender. It really, truly takes a lot for someone to get away because they have to come to terms with it themselves.”

A Safe Place is a confidential and comprehensive program that provides services to victims of domestic violence, sexual assault and other crimes in the county. They are located on the State Hospital grounds in North Warren, where there is easy access to other social services and public transportation.

A Safe Place started as a shelter for battered women, but changed their name years ago when it became apparent that men were victims of domestic violence as well.

“In my eight years here, I have seen a huge increase in the amount of men coming for services.” Fetzeck said.

A Safe Place serves both Warren and Forest counties, but the bulk of their domestic violence cases come from Warren County. Generally, between 380 and over 400 people are helped in Warren County, while Forest County is significantly less, closer to 25 individuals, according to Fetzeck.

“A lot of people from outside the area end up here, and they don’t have family or close friends because the offenders bring them to the area. Many people meet through the internet. It’s surprising when you work with someone from a distant state and it’s not a job or family that brought them here. A lot of times it’s an internet dating site,” Fetzeck said.

In those cases, A Safe Place works to get them back to their family support systems.

A Safe Place helps with safety planning, court accompaniment, and help with protection from abuse orders. They also accompany victims to law enforcement interviews or the hospital. The emergency room will call them if a victim shows up and advocates will tell them about the services that are offered by A Safe Place, including an emergency shelter that is at an undisclosed location away from their main office.

“When victims do break away, they’re literally starting from scratch. They don’t have anything, you know, a lot of times where they’re living, whether it’s a home they own or a place that they rent. It’s always in the offender’s name. They may not have a vehicle or even a driver’s license, so they are really in control of the person they are with,” Fetzeck said. “And being in a rural setting can make it even harder, since there isn’t always public transit. How do you get from one end of the county to the other without a car?”

A Safe Place also operates a 24 hour hotline that is answered by advocates from A Safe Place. No call ever leaves the county. That number is 1-800-338-3460, and its website is asafeplacewarren.org.

While domestic abuse is a crime, many abusers are never charged.

“People are afraid to come forward with it in a small county like this. They worry about who is going to find out what is happening in their home. They just don’t want to talk about it.” Fetzeck said. “As soon as you press charges and it goes to trial, it appears as a blurb in the newspaper and everyone knows. They might not know your name, but they know your spouse’s name.”

While services were given to close to 400 individuals in Warren County last year, only 120 protection from abuse orders were issued. That averages out to 10 orders every month, two or three every week. A Safe Place works closely with law enforcement on these.

“What’s happening when a protection from abuse order is being served on an offender is that they’re removing an offender from the house and telling them, you can’t be here. You can’t have contact. One thing that we’re fortunate for in Pennsylvania is we have Act 79, which requires any offender that’s being served with a protection from abuse order has to relinquish all of their firearms. They cannot be in possession of any type of firearm, sometimes for two or three years before they get them back.” Fetzeck said.

The relinquishing of firearms can be a big deal, both for the offender and the victim. That is often a victim’s biggest concern.

“They don’t want to take the firearms away, because then the offender can’t hunt, and he loves to hunt. A lot of victims minimize what they are going through,” Fetzeck said.

A Safe Place fulfills many of the same needs as a homeless shelter. Victims of domestic abuse often walk out with little more than the clothes on their back, though A Safe Place can help victims create plans to take more basic essentials. The agency can always use donations of soap, shampoo, toothbrushes, toothpaste, feminine hygiene products and all the basics people need for day to day care. Financial donations are also essential, and used to do everything from paying to have locks changed on doors to help keep people safe to pillows, blankets and food.

The services offered by A Safe Place are 100% confidential. Visitors are buzzed in through a windowless steel door.