By Sharon Arsego; Bristol Magazine; Aug. 2025
The Mission
The groundbreaking work carried out by Prudence Crandall Center (PCC), located in both Bristol and New Britain, began in 1973 as Connecticut’s first shelter for battered women. With no road map or template to guide them, the Center’s founders identified the needs of those living with domestic violence, and forged a new way forward, developing and expanding on their life-saving work and services throughout their fifty-year history. Today, Prudence Crandall Center remains dedicated to helping individuals achieve lives free of domestic violence by providing care, advocacy, support, and education.
The comprehensive, “wrap around services” Prudence Crandall provides are on the cutting edge in the state and in the nation. It speaks of their creativity, understanding and perseverance. Their highly skilled, compassionate team meets survivors where they are in their most difficult moments, employing necessary high-impact programs and well-resourced networks to best help survivors, men, women, and their children, both immediately and in the long term.
Statistics tell us that domestic violence is actively present in every town and community, while remaining mostly unknown to those outside the relationship. One in 4 women, 1 in 7 men, and 1 in 3 dating teens experience abuse, most often starting in the home or while in a personal relationship. Types of domestic abuse include, but are not limited to, online or digital abuse, patterns or incidents of harassment and stalking, threatening and intimidation, degradation, control, and physical or sexual violence. In the majority of cases, these acts of violence are perpetrated by a partner or ex-partner but can also be by a family member or caregiver.
Barbara Damon, Prudence Crandall’s President & CEO, recognizes domestic violence as “a public health crisis”, as it reaches deep into every corner of the survivor’s world, and their community. Neglect and abuse tear people down in the most egregious of ways, and often lead to isolation, where abuse thrives. Domestic violence is also one of the leading causes of homelessness for women with children who have nowhere to turn when escaping an abusive home. The ability for survivors to stay fed and clothed, to succeed at work and school, and to maintain or develop healthy connections is obstructed by the reach of the abuser. It is in these areas, and many more, where Prudence Crandall Center, and a caring community, can make the greatest impact on the lives of survivors and their families.
Nurturing Hope and Community
A caring community of allies and supporters donating their time, talents and funds is invaluable to Prudence Crandall and its clients. The generosity of individuals, businesses and organizations makes it possible for Prudence Crandall to continue offering its unique combination of shelter, housing, and support services victims need to help build self-sufficient lives, free from their abusers. The kindness shown is never taken for granted, and the support received bolsters the Prudence Crandall staff as well as the survivors.
A vital piece to the Prudence Crandall mission is to provide awareness-raising events for the public and community groups. The Hope Tour, led by Prudence Crandall Center,
is designed to help attendees learn more about the impact of domestic violence, what the center provides, and to become involved in making a difference by sharing what they’ve learned with friends and family. The Hope Tour is a first-hand look into how lives have been changed with the support of their community.
To schedule a tour, please call 860.225.5187, ext.219 or direct dial 860-259-3824 to make a reservation. All are welcome.
Additional training programs are available for professionals serving the needs of victims and their children. This includes law enforcement, first responders, health care professionals, and both school and court personnel.
Prudence Crandall currently has liaisons in each of the nine police departments in their service area, including Bristol. With protocols in place, officers are able to determine risk level, and call the Prudence Crandall Crisis Line, connecting victims with their counselors to determine next steps in those critical moments.
Businesses, religious and civic organizations, and other community groups have found the prevention training programs offered by Prudence Crandall Center to be especially helpful in raising awareness among their employees and members.
Prudence Crandall also offers intensive, research-based, multi-week courses as part of its prevention program for schools or youth-serving organizations. These courses are designed at reducing the risk factors and increasing positive behaviors that lead to healthy relationships among teens.
The need to educate our youth about the signs and dangers of violent behavior in a relationship is key. Creating awareness now helps those currently experiencing the abuse, while also bringing the issue into clearer focus at a younger age in the hope that it will prevent heartbreaking tragedies. To learn more or to arrange for a speaker, training, or prevention program, please scan the provided QR code, email kedgeworth@prudencecrandall.org or call 860-936-6965.
Joining Forces: Bristol Health & Prudence Crandall Center
On Friday, June 6th, 2025, Bristol Health and Prudence Crandall announced a new community partnership “focused on raising awareness and expanding support services for domestic violence survivors in the greater Bristol area.” In the press release provided by Bristol Health, Christine Laprise, Vice President of Operations at Bristol Health, is named for leading the way with the community partnership and highlighting “the importance of collaboration to strengthen local organizations and ensure vital resources remain accessible.”
At the announcement, Kurt Barwis, FACHE, President and CEO of Bristol Health spoke to the audience about “the vital role of collaboration in addressing all forms of violence”, and shared insights he gained while part of an FBI panel on the subject the previous year. Barbara Damon, representing Prudence Crandall, expressed her thanks, saying, “We are deeply grateful to Bristol Health for stepping up—not just with words, but with meaningful action.”
One of the main components of the partnership between Bristol Health and Prudence Crandall Center includes specialized training for staff across a number of Bristol Health’s points of care such as the OBGYN offices, the Women, Infant and Children (WIC) Center, Emergency Department, Behavioral Health and more. Prudence Crandall Center will also make their resources available to Bristol Health patients, staff, and visitors throughout its facilities.
At the press conference, Naseem Walker spoke in memory of his late mother, Shenia Walker of Bristol, who was tragically lost to domestic violence in 2013. With courage and through tears, Naseem spoke to the pain of his family’s loss stating, “What happened to you, Mom, was not fair”, and that he was there to bring awareness to domestic violence.
In this way, the Walker family continues to honor Shenia’s memory by advocating for domestic violence awareness and working to prevent other families from enduring a similar loss. Speaking about Prudence Crandall Center on a separate occasion, Shenia’s sisters, Tammie Walker and Taffie Walker-Dudley, shared that “from the first moment PCC found out, they reached out to us and showered us with so much love…You feel the love that they give, and you know the care they have for people that are in the program, for our family, for other families, is genuine.”
Join PCC’s Bristol 100 Campaign!
The Bristol 100 Campaign has a goal to raise the $100,000 needed each year to sustain PCC’s Bristol office, located in the heart of the city. This space was initially made possible by a three-year American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) grant awarded by the Bristol ARPA Task Force in 2022.
With the ARPA funding ending in June 2025, Prudence Crandall Center remains committed to sustaining the warm and welcoming counseling and meeting spaces where survivors can access all the services Prudence Crandall provides. Your gift to the campaign allows for the continued provision of safety and advocacy, healing and hope for survivors and children in our Bristol Community.
Donations
Donations can be made online at: prudencecrandall.org/donate, or by contact Carolyn Jasper at 860-259-3817 or cjasper@prudencecrandall.org.
How to Connect with PCC
For more information about Prudence Crandall Center, their services, and the Bristol 100 Campaign, visit them online at https://prudencecrandall.org/. The website’s Home page offers helpful resources from identifying signs of abuse and ways to request PCC’s help, to volunteer opportunities and fundraising events. PCC can also be found on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/prudencecrandallcenter.
Domestic violence support, services, and ultimately prevention are at the heart of Prudence Crandall Center. Let’s work together to continue the invaluable, lifesaving, life-changing work of Prudence Crandall Center in Bristol!
Special thanks to the following members of the PCC Leadership Team and Staff who made this article possible: Barbara Damon, President & CEO, Carolyn Jasper, Chief Development Officer, and Caylee Chenkus, Development Manager, Communications. Thanks also to David Rackliffe, Chair of PCC’s Board of Directors, for making the introductions.
Sources for this article include the Prudence Crandall website, interviews and communications with the PCC Leadership Team, and the Bristol Health & PCC June 6, 2025, Press Release. Statements made by the Walker family are shared with their permission. Nazeem Walker’s comments are included in the Bristol Health Press Release.
To request a copy of the press release, please reach out to Bristol Health’s Media Contact: Ysmael Albert Peguero, DBA, FACHE, System Director of Strategy and Business Operations, (860) 585-3558, ypeguero@bristolhospital.org.