A women’s church group is taking the beginning steps on ajourney to open a shelter for abused women and children in LincolnCounty.

The first step was taken Tuesday at Easthaven Baptist Churchduring a Women on Mission meeting. Jan Douglas, an event organizer,said the meeting was to learn more about abuse and how the Women onMission could help the victims.

“We needed knowledge on how to start a shelter and how muchsupport we can expect from the community,” she said.

Christy Harrison, of the Mississippi Coalition Against DomesticViolence, opened the meeting with some chilling statistics thatensured the speakers had the attention of the audience.

Mississippi is presently ranked number two in the nation forincidents of domestic violence, a position it has held for severalyears, and fifth in the nation for women killed by their partners,Harrison said. She added that one-third of female homicides arecommitted by their partner and one in four women will be abused intheir lifetimes.

The statistics stunned Darlene Morris, an event organizer, butreinforced for her the need for an emergency shelter in LincolnCounty.

“There are women and children in situations where they need toflee from the home, but there’s nowhere in Lincoln County for themto go,” Morris said. “We want to provide them a safe haven for 24to 48 hours until we can get them into a shelter.”

Lincoln County Sheriff Steve Rushing estimated his officereceives approximately 20 or more domestic violence calls amonth.

“A lot of those are repeating,” he said. “Most are only verbal,but we get physical abuse calls, too.”

The sheriff’s department currently uses a shelter in Natchez, hesaid, but there is often a wait to get the abuse victim into thefacility.

Donna Miller, director of the Domestic Violence Shelter inNatchez, said her facility services 11 counties and can onlyprovide shelter for up to 30 women and their children. Most of thewomen stay in the shelter from 30 to 45 days to learn how to fendfor themselves once released.

Most abused women, she said, have not had the control to beginto become financially or emotionally prepared for a life away fromtheir abuser.

“We do need a 24 to 48 hour emergency shelter just to get themout of the house and a potentially dangerous situation,” Rushingsaid. “A lot of the ones we deal with would have a place to go ifthey only had a day or two to plan.”

Miller described some of the policies and procedures required bylaw and provided tips on how to start, operate and fund ashelter.

Individuals with the desire to help can sometimes by”overwhelmed” by the details in establishing a shelter, she said.But she believed the Women on Mission had a good start based on thenumber in attendance and the support of the church and localauthorities in the audience, which included District 39 Sen. CindyHyde Smith and District 92 Rep. Becky Currie.

“I think having a group and a church behind you will be a greathelp,” Miller said.

Although Women on Mission members received a lot of informationTuesday, Douglas said there was still a lot for them to learn andthey would need to discuss in future meetings on which steps totake next.