Letters to the editor
DVVSP needs community support
Across Washington, Greene, and Fayette counties, there are neighbors quietly rebuilding their lives after surviving abuse. They are returning to work, enrolling their children in new schools, attending therapy, or navigating the legal system — often for the first time — in pursuit of safety and stability.
Domestic Violence Services of Southwestern Pennsylvania (DVSSP) exists to walk alongside them through that journey. But today, organizations like ours are facing a growing challenge that many in our community may not yet realize.
DVSSP recently received notice that federal funding through the Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) — one of the largest funding sources for victim service agencies nationwide — will be reduced by an additional 7.5% for the coming year, amounting to a reduction of $51,000 for DVSSP. According to the 2025-2027 VOCA Year 2 Allocation Table, DVSSP’s VOCA funding for services in Washington, Greene, and Fayette counties will total $604,333 for the next funding period.
While that number may seem substantial at first glance, VOCA funding has been steadily declining for years due to reduced deposits into the federal Crime Victims Fund, the primary source of support for victim service programs like ours. As a result, agencies across Pennsylvania and the nation are being asked to do more with less at a time when the need for services remains urgent.
For DVSSP, VOCA funding supports critical services survivors rely on when they make the brave decision to seek help. These include emergency safe housing, legal advocacy, therapy, and our 24/7 confidential helpline — resources that often serve as lifelines for individuals and families experiencing abuse.
When reductions occur, the ripple effects are felt locally. Fewer dollars may mean fewer resources for therapy and empowerment sessions, prevention programming in schools, or advocacy for survivors navigating complex legal systems.
And yet, this is where hope lives.
DVSSP has always relied on the strength of our community to help bridge gaps and ensure survivors receive the support they deserve. Local businesses, individual donors, foundations, volunteers, and civic partners continue to play a vital role in sustaining these services.
Domestic violence affects people in every neighborhood, workplace, and school district across our region. When survivors reach out for help, they deserve to know support will be there.
If you are looking for a way to make a meaningful difference close to home, consider supporting DVSSP through a financial contribution, donation drive, or volunteer opportunity. Every act of support helps sustain the peace for someone who needs it most.
Megan Hegedus
CEO, DVVSP
Give TSA agents a bonus
Anyone who travels through an airport is likely aware of a metastasizing crisis, delays of as much as several hours at security checkpoints due to the ridiculous fact that TSA agents are not being paid during the current government shutdown.
There is a way for the federal government to ameliorate the problem: promise those who consistently come to work during the shutdown a bonus of several thousand dollars when it ends.
The federal government is providing an ICE agent recruiting bonus of as much as $50,000 and it is spending billions and billions of dollars on Donald Trump’s lethal war of choice against Iran, a war with no apparent goal and no end game. Surely it can find the money to ensure that air travelers are not severely impacted over a problem that was not of their making.
Oren Spiegler
Peters Township