The rural domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking program (rural program) is authorized by 34 U.S.C. 12341

The Department of Justice Office on Violence Against Women awarded Tabernacle Church Southaven $700,000 under the Rural Domestic Violence, Dating Violence, Sexual Assault, and Stalking Assistance Program (CFDA 16.589) on October 1, 2025, for a period of performance through September 30, 2028.

Tabernacle Church Southaven, a minority-owned nonprofit based in Southaven, Mississippi, will identify, assess, and respond to child, youth, and adult victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, dating violence, and stalking in rural communities through cooperative law enforcement efforts, victim services, counseling, advocacy, and prevention education. The organization is partnering with Magnolia Blossoms Consulting and Journey to Destiny to deliver these services. Work is performed in Southaven, Mississippi, in the DeSoto County region.

The Rural Program funds victim services and community intervention strategies in rural areas, including treatment and counseling for victims, legal assistance, community education and prevention initiatives, and development or expansion of sexual assault forensic medical examination and sexual assault nurse examiner programs. Grantees must employ at least one of five core strategies: cooperative investigation and prosecution efforts among law enforcement, prosecutors, and victim service providers; victim and population-specific services; community-based education and prevention; programs addressing sexual assault; or initiatives addressing the needs of victims in remote rural and geographically isolated areas.

Rural program funds are used to support programs that: 1) identify, assess, and appropriately respond to child, youth, and adult victims of domestic violence, sexual assault, dating violence, and stalking in rural communities; 2) establish and expand victim services in rural communities to child, youth, and adult victims; 3) increase the safety and well-being of women and children in rural communities, by (a) dealing directly and immediately with domestic violence, sexual assault, dating violence, and stalking; and (b) creating and implementing strategies to increase awareness and prevent these crimes; and 4) develop, expand, implement, and improve the quality of sexual assault forensic medical examination or sexual assault nurse examiner programs. Grantees must use at least one of the following strategies in implementing their projects: 1) implement, expand, and establish cooperative efforts and projects among law enforcement officers, prosecutors, victim service providers, and other related parties to investigate and prosecute incidents of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking; 2) provide treatment, counseling, advocacy, legal assistance, and other long-term and short-term victim and population specific services to adult and minor victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking in rural communities; 3) work in cooperation with the community to develop education and prevention strategies directed toward such issues; 4) develop, enlarge, or strengthen programs addressing sexual assault; and 5) develop programs and strategies that focus on the specific needs of victims of who reside in remote rural and geographically isolated areas. Through this new OVW rural program project, tabernacle church of GOD in christ, in partnership with magnolia blossoms consulting and journey to destiny, will implement project SWAT rural survivor initiative. This victim service project addresses the followingpurpose areas:1, 2, and 3 for the rural counties of tunica county and the rural census tracts of desoto county, mississippi. Specific activities will include:1) hiring and deploying a rural victim advocate to provide mobile, trauma-informed services in rural communities; 2) expanding emergency and transitional housing options for victims of sexual assault and human trafficking; 3) formalizing and expanding a coordinated community response (CCR) team, including law enforcement, healthcare, and school-based partners; 4) delivering survivor-centered services such as crisis response hotline, advocacy, safety planning, and support groups; 5) implementing targeted community education and prevention campaigns focused primarily on sexual assault and human trafficking; and 6) developing and distributing culturally relevant materials such as crisis response manuals, referral guides, outreach flyers, and social media toolkits to increase awareness for support of sexual assault survivors.