DENVER — Content Warning: This article discusses topics that may be sensitive for some readers, including sexual assault.
When survivors of sexual assault in Denver need help, The Blue Bench is there to answer the call.
The organization, which provides therapy services as well as victim advocacy services, is seeing a rise in calls that they call unprecedented.
"It is unprecedented. We expect to see some activity around major holidays, but this is this is out of the norm even for this time of the year," said Megan Carvajal, the organization's executive director.
On average, the group sees around 160 calls per month to their hotline.
In November of this year, they say, they received more than 300 calls--a 78% increase overall.
That demand has led to longer wait times for those seeking therapy services.
"So we provide therapy services. Someone who would like to be matched with a therapist to process their trauma or anything related to their trauma, right now, that's a six to eight week waiting list to get someone in the door," Carvajal said.
They're seeing a similar demand for those seeking support during a hospital visit.
"There's most people come in through our hotline, and then the next level is people are asking for support for a hospital visit, so they're going to the hospital to receive care after an assault, and those calls are up over 100% in the last month. That's 50 people in one month who needed services," Carvajal said.
The exact cause for the increase is hard to pinpoint for now, but Carvajal said the holiday season is one factor.
"I think the time of the year is compounded. So holidays coming up on the end of the year, coming out of the pandemic, getting out and doing things that we didn't do a year ago," she said. "Holidays are hard in general. You know, we're with family, we're with loved ones. There's always dynamics that are out of our control and experiencing trauma is something that is out of our control. So I think even just the emotional labor of moving into the holidays and potentially spending time with people who are related to your trauma or your assault, that can be triggering in itself. And that's why we may see calls go up."
The pandemic could play another role.
"I think the pandemic triggered a lot of experiences that people have had in their lives of being locked down, feeling unsafe, and no matter what kind of violence you've experienced in your life, the pandemic was likely impacting those emotions and those feelings," she said.
Another reason could be that more people are aware of The Blue Bench's services, Carvajal said.
While they haven't yet looked into the growth of Denver playing a role, the group acknowledges that it's something to look at.
"The metro Denver has changed a lot in the last two years, and we still don't know the effects of what's happening to any community where the community members itself are changing," she said.
Overall, they believe that more employees, volunteers and funding could help meet demand.
"We believe that this is a community issue, and in order for us to meet the demand, the community needs to support organizations like ours. The Blue Bench needs more funding. We are committed to helping no matter what that waitlist exists, because we will get to serve those people. We would love to serve them today, and that always requires more resources," Caravajal said. "We want lawmakers to understand the issue. We want them to reach out to us and let us help them be more educated about why consent is so important in schools, why this is a community issue, and that's something that we have really been trying to prioritize, is how do we build those relationships at the elected official level?"
The organization also provides case management services to those trying to acquire housing that was lost due to a sexual assault case.
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