Ellen Berliner - Knowledge (XXG)

262:. As Berliner and Steytler became more familiar with the number of women and children affected by these crimes, they established and operated a telephone hotline to provide victims with a safe way of requesting help. Their initiatives were subsequently used as models for the launch of similar centers and programs by other civic leaders across the nation. From 1975 through 1977, their program provided housing assistance to five hundred and twenty-eight women and three hundred and eleven children. More than fifty percent of those women and children had experienced domestic violence. 251:, where they established their first shelter. That shelter initially offered safety for up to six women at a time, and cost roughly two thousand dollars per year to operate. As word of their efforts spread, they began receiving pledges of financial support from area residents, which quickly reached roughly four hundred dollars per month. The Women's Center & Shelter of Pittsburgh was officially incorporated in April 1974. 325:"If you spend the time, the touch of your hand and the fact they're being hugged when you're the only one who hugs them.... They know, if you stay long enough," she said in 1992 of her husband and others with family members who had been diagnosed with the disease. After her husband died from complications related to the disease, she continued to volunteer with the association for much of the remainder of her life. 243:. Using their own money to establish the center, their first planning meeting was held in Berliner's living room. They subsequently rented a small storefront location on West Liberty Avenue in order to open a crisis center for women and children experiencing domestic violence and then secured a $ 5,000 grant from the 265:

By 1979, the Women's Center had a yearly budget of $ 160,000, which was funded by grants from the federal government, the Allegheny County Board of Public Assistance, the Attorney Generals Public Health Trust, the Hillman Foundation, and the Pittsburgh Foundation, as well as individual donations from

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for residents in and beyond Mt. Lebanon. Berliner also initiated a series of public events, including the "No-Church Church" and community dinners that brought diverse groups together to explore ways to collaborate on a range of civil rights issues and helped to persuade local government leaders to

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response and prevention centers in the United States, the Women's Center helped to pave the way for the creation of similar crisis centers in every state across the nation by piloting programs and services to help women and children affected by intimate partner violence or sexual assault while

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In addition, Berliner established an annual tradition for her neighborhood — hosting a pancake breakfast for area children on the final day of school each year. It was held in the front yard of her home, which had become known, by that time, as a safe place for women and children who were

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By 1992, the Women's Center employed a staff of thirty-five and had an operating budget of $ 1.5 million. That same year, more than 12,000 calls for assistance were made to the center's hotline. In 1993, more than seven hundred women and children were housed by the center's shelter.

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In 1982, Berliner and Steytler expanded their anti-domestic violence work by developing educational outreach programs for, and lobbying on behalf of the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Violence. In 1983, they lobbied for stronger legal reporting requirements in

212:. Initially designed to be a community gathering place, it soon became the site of planning meetings that enabled neighborhood residents to come together with the owners of Otto Dairy to acquire land on which they were able to build a community playground. 1097:" (video of interview with Nicole Molinaro, president and chief executive officer of the Women's Center & Shelter of Greater Pittsburgh, during which she speaks about Ellen Berliner's impact). Ridgway, Pennsylvania: CAPSEA, Inc., February 7, 2022). 285:

cases and protective services funding for victims of mental and physical abuse. They also planned and implemented the National Day of Unity on October 16, 1982 to commemorate the deaths of women who were killed in domestic violence-related incidents.

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One of the first six domestic violence response and prevention centers ever created in the United States, the center pioneered programs that helped women and children survive, escape and heal from the

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educating government, law enforcement and medical professionals, as well as the general public about the causes and impact of such violence and potential ways to interrupt and prevent the

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Also during this same period, Ellen, Arthur and Lauren Berliner were part of a group of fifty parents, students and other community members who filed suit in the

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Her friend and collaborator, Anne Steytler, was also subsequently diagnosed with Alzheimer's, and died from complications related to the disease in 2010.

1130: 1042: 1155: 1175: 1110: 1083:" (photo), in "History of WC&S." Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: Women's Center & Shelter of Greater Pittsburgh, retrieved online June 20, 2023. 315: 220: 1190: 176:"The longer you live, the more you can see inequities. You just have to open your eyes. It's up to you whether you pick it up or leave it lay." 157: 219:. She and Rush fought for civil rights, improved access to public educational opportunities for children and adults, and fair access to safe, 1180: 1115: 1165: 394: 355: 270: 169: 1150: 1125: 882: 190: 1135: 371: 1090:" (1980s era photo of Berliner and Keefe by Lynn Johnson). Athens, Ohio: Ohio University Libraries, retrieved online June 20, 2023. 833:

Park, "Ellen Berliner: Founder of Women's Center and Shelter of Greater Pittsburgh," Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, March 8, 2011, p. B3.

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Park, "Ellen Berliner: Founder of Women's Center and Shelter of Greater Pittsburgh," Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, March 8, 2011, p. B3.

531:"Berliner, Ellen W.," in "U.S. Social Security Death Index," March 4, 2011. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Social Security Administration. 1160: 340:, Berliner died at the age of ninety from that medical condition at St. Clair Hospital in Mt. Lebanon, Pennsylvania on March 4. 1170: 800: 384: 168:

In 1991, she was recognized for her contributions to society by the American Institute for Public Service as one of its

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Ellen Berliner meets with Nanci Keefe at the University of Pittsburgh Medical School's Alzheimer's research clinic

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Humanitarian of the Year Award (with Anne Steytler), Greater Pittsburgh Unitarian Universalist Council, 1983

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During the 1960s, Ellen W. Berliner and a group of friends co-founded The Meeting Place in Pittsburgh's

148:, of the South Hills Association for Racial Equality during the 1960s, she subsequently co-founded the 1205: 1200: 244: 474: 314:

cases today. In response, Berliner and her husband began participating in research studies at the

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from including prayers in its commencement exercises." Steytler was also one of the plaintiffs.

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area residents. That year, the center's hotline averaged roughly seventy-five calls daily.

255: 162: 134: 1080: 941:." Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: Zonta Club of Pittsburgh, retrieved online June 20, 2023. 1104: 1015: