When Ann Marie Buerkle is public in Washington about her support for Vera House in Syracuse, an agency that has long been rock solidly there for women and men who are victims of domestic violence and/or rape, I applaud her. That we are reminded of the need and the services every year at this time by the White Ribbon Campaign is important.
Therefore I cannot for the life of me think why Ann Marie would be so totally against Planned Parenthood. In so many ways Planned Parenthood and Vera House are similar, and the two agencies share many of the same values and concerns.
I cannot document with numbers but I think, based on years of work in many areas of social services, that there are crossover service needs between these two agencies and many other local programs as well.
Vera House and Planned Parenthood do not offer duplicate services. They offer companion services because any person who comes for services at either one may well have more than one need, not always able to be filled by the primary agency.
For example:
- A woman who has been raped may also want reproductive services, up to and including, though not necessarily, an abortion. Planned Parenthood is an option.
- While a woman is being seen for family planning services, the nurse may learn that the woman is in a situation at home that includes domestic abuse. Her children may also be in danger. The family may need sheltering. Vera House can help.
- A man or woman being abused at home may realize she/he needs to be tested for sexually transmitted diseases and ask for a referral to PP.
- A clinic patient may disclose her own childhood abuse and be referred to Vera House for counseling.
The budgets for the two agencies, Vera House and Planned Parenthood have many similarities. What I want to address from here onward is that both receive a share of their budgets from government entities. In fact they cannot operate without these monies. Our federal and state governments have both deemed human services as areas that smaller communities and individuals cannot provide by themselves.
On Vera House's website there are very nice pie charts showing the following, which cannot be copied to here but I recommend you visit. Here is Vera House's budget picture for 2009:
Support and Revenue
2009 Support and Revenue as %
Government Fees & Grants 71%
Private Donations 14%
United Way 9%
Fees 3%
Other Revenue 3%
2009 Support and Revenue in $
Government Fees & Grants $2,379,539
Private Donations 464,284
United Way 302,151
Fees 107,414
Other Revenue 105,003
Total Support & Revenue $3,358,391
Expenses
2009 Expenses as %
p = program expenses, s = program support expenses
Emergency Shelter p 28%
Counseling p 20%
Education & Awareness p 20%
Outreach & Advocacy p 18%
Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner p 5%
Fundraising s 4%
Alternatives p 3%
Administrative s 2%
Program Services (p) in $ = 94%
Emergency Shelter $852,549
Counseling 632,301
Education & Community Awareness 594,903
Outreach & Advocacy 565,195
Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner 156,467
Alternatives 124,350
Total Program Expenses $2,925,765
Supporting Services (s) in $ = 6%
Fundraising $134,403
Administrative 57,718
Total Supporting Services $192,121
Total Expenses $3,117,886
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Next is the national budget for Planned Parenthood. I do not have local numbers but believe that local numbers are more or less reflected in the national budget. The actual numbers for the two entities, Vera House and Planned Parenthood are obviously therefore miles apart. But there are programs comparable to Vera House all over the land who receive federal Titles money, for which I am thankful. I show this next budget to illustrate how Planned Parenthood compares to Vera House for reliance upon government funding:
Let me also say, for the record, that I wish sister agencies could look out for each other. What is being done to women by harming Planned Parenthood is violence of a sort. I wish for Vera House and its counterparts to find public ways to advocate for Planned Parenthood.
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