New DAIS shelter is a statement worth celebrating

On Wednesday, Domestic Abuse Intervention Services will cut the ribbon on a new shelter for victims of domestic violence. We do not celebrate the need for a place to protect women from abuse. But that will not stop us from celebrating the community stepping up to provide safety, comfort, support and resources for victims and – and we can’t stress this enough – for a new, unafraid, determined commitment to making the statement that domestic abuse will not be tolerated in Dane County.

The new DAIS facility on Fordem Avenue is the end result of generous donors led by Boo and Loren Mortenson, an extremely talented DAIS staff and board of directors, and broad community support including law enforcement.

But the public awareness of the shelter location, of the hope that if offers, and of the end of the cycle of silence and enabling is what we find most optimistic of all. And that we can celebrate.

Dane County is a place that rejects domestic abuse and will do whatever it takes to end it. It’s a new DAIS.