Welcome to Women Helping
Women
224 Main Street, Metuchen, NJ 08840
The Issues We Address
In today's society, women are confronted with poverty, violence, discrimination and other concerns, despite advances in opportunities for women.
- Approximately 20% of adult women are raped in their lifetimes.
- Three to four million women are battered each year in the United States.
- One in four girls will be sexually abused by age 18.
- The average age of entry into prostitution is 14 years.
- Women and children are economically at risk. Generally, women have higher rates of unemployment, lower wages, less stable job tenure and fewer employment benefits.
The ramifications of these issues are too frequently not addressed. Given this, an organization such as Women Helping Women is as vital today as it was twenty-two years ago when it began. As a response to the specific needs of women arising from the above stated issues, Women Helping Women has developed various programs and specialized services. Women Helping Women focuses on empowering each individual woman, within the context of her own unique life situation, in a way that no other organization does.
Mission
Women Helping Women is a non-profit, community-based organization committed to providing financially accessible social services to enhance the quality of women's lives. We believe in the ability of the individual to discover and build on her inner strength. The Women Helping Women community supports and inspires us to overcome obstacles, reach their potential, and thus enrich our lives and the world in which we live and work.
Philosophy
Women Helping Women is dedicated to helping women reach their full potential. Our philosophical roots are based in the belief that women's psychological well-being positively influence the community as a whole. As women take responsibility for the control of their lives and behaviors, this positively effects the quality of life in the family, the workplace and the community.
History
Women Helping Women was founded in 1975 through a collaboration between the Rutgers Mental Health Center and the National Council of Jewish Women to respond to many of the specific issues confronted by women, such as divorce, physical abuse and single parenting. Through this collaboration an alternative to the traditional mental health model was born that has its roots in a belief: the empowerment of women.
Throughout its 24-year history, Women Helping Women has been at the forefront of developing programs to meet the needs of women in the community. We are committed to treating women with respect and dignity in order to help them reach their fullest potential. Our philosophical roots are based in the belief that women's psychological well-being positively influences the community as a whole. As women take responsibility for the control of their lives and behaviors, this positively effects the quality of life in the family, the workplace and the community.
The following objectives highlight this philosophy:
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To provide an efficient and relevant alternative to the mental health services which now exist for women.
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To provide support for women going through transitional and/or developmental crisis periods in their lives.
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To provide an atmosphere in which women may individually learn, grow, develop positive self-images and find viable options to their present situations.
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To enable women to develop stable, productive, satisfying lives through the use of social, educational, mental health, vocational and self-help techniques.
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To develop a volunteer program in which women share their talents and skills, serve as models of success to others and experience personal growth.
Our Services
Women Helping Women's programs and services provide critical support to women experiencing the emotional pain that comes from things such as:
- growing up in a dysfunctional family where they may have been
emotionally, physically, or sexually abused;
- being in the midst of crisis or transition as a result of separation or
divorce;
- being affected by alcoholism, drug addiction, rape, or incest;
- needing the development of communication skills to enhance their personal and/or professional lives.
Fulfilling its mission, WHW provides the following programs and services:
- Individual counseling
- Group therapy
- Peer-led Support Groups
- Telephone Help-Line
- Community Education Workshops
- Newsletter
- Legal Clinics
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