Hope of South Texas, Inc.

In 1983, a Sexual Assault Program was begun in Victoria by Women's Crisis Center, an agency dedicated to serving battered women and their dependents. The Sexual Assault Program and Domestic Violence Program were both served by volunteers manning a 24-hour hotline. In April, 1984, a Sexual Assault Services Coordinator was hired by Women's Crisis Center to expand and improve the program. Client services were expanded and community relationships were developed. However, in November, 1985, the Sexual Assault Services Coordinator resigned from her position with the Women's Crisis Center. Soon afterwards, the Women's Crisis Center board voted to discontinue the Sexual Assault portion of their services. In early 1986, Drs. George and Ruth Constant were in the process of developing a non-profit agency for suicide prevention. Upon hearing the WCC had discontinued the Sexual Assault Program; they decided to re-institute the program through a new agency. In February 1986, Hope of South Texas was formed as a non-profit agency to address the needs of people in “crisis times”, as stated in the Hope of South Texas bylaws, and an administrator was hired. Hope of South Texas was incorporated in March 1986 and received its tax-exempt number for the Internal Revenue Service in June 1986. Client services began in May 1986 and were extended to the seven County (Calhoun, Dewitt, Goliad, Gonzales, Jackson, Lavaca, and Victoria) Golden Crescent Region. Until September 1987, Hope of South Texas addressed the issues of suicide and sexual assault in client services and educational programs. At that time, the Hope of South Texas Board of Directors voted to officially discontinue the Suicide Program due to lack of available state and private funding for suicide prevention. In 2002, Hope of South Texas altered is direction from doing only sexual assault. At this time they created an additional program providing child advocacy services to children who had been sexually, physically, and/or mentally abused. Services as a child advocacy program added such services as forensic interviewing, multiple disciplinary team collaboration, mental health and medical service provision. In September of 2012, because of internal management issues Hope of South Texas closed its doors and stopped providing services. Although the organization did not disband, they did re-examine services and it was decided that they would for the time only pursue the child advocacy portion of the operation. In March of 2013 a new executive director was hired and the office was reopened and the rebuilding process was begun.