What: The Crisis Center of Tampa Bay has opened a second certified rape crisis center in south Hillsborough County. Previously, the only location has been in north Tampa.
Why is this important: Previously, any individual in Hillsborough County seeking support following a sexual assault who is 13 years and older was brought to the north Tampa location, where only one client can be assisted at a time for a forensic exam. Of the ten Hillsborough zip codes that grew the fastest between 2010-2020, seven are in south county. This includes areas like Ruskin and Wimauma that have a high percentage of Hispanic individuals.
TAMPA, FL., May 3, 2023 – The Crisis Center of Tampa Bay has opened its second Certified Rape Crisis Center in Hillsborough County. For many years, the Crisis Center has been operating out of one office in North Tampa to provide this service. With the addition of a second location in Ruskin, two clients can now be seen for this service at the same time and individuals living in south county will have an office within their own community.
This new location has been made possible through collaboration with the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office and Sheriff Chad Chronister, Commissioner Harry Cohen, the Board of County Commissioners, and Clerk of Court Cindy Stuart. Moving forward, the Crisis Center also plans to work with Commissioner Michael Owen as the current representative of this part of the county.
The new location is at the SouthShore Community Resource Center (201 14th Avenue Southeast Ruskin, Florida 33570).
Due to the diverse community within south county, the Ruskin Sexual Assault Services location will be staffed with several bilingual (English/Spanish) advocates and nurses, as well as a nurse ambassador to work throughout that region of the county to raise awareness for this new service location.
“One of the Crisis Center’s strategic pillars is to provide an ‘Effortless Experience’ for our clients. For the many individuals living in the southern part of our county, it was difficult to ensure they had an effortless experience following an assault. This new location will ease access to this vital resource and help survivors of assault get the support they need in the aftermath of this traumatic event,” says Clara Reynolds, President & CEO of the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay.
As the certified rape crisis center for Hillsborough County, individuals 13 years and older come to the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay for services following a sexual assault. Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners collect evidence for the forensic exam while victim advocates provide emotional support and connections to community resources. This service is available 24/7, 365 days a year. Individuals needing support can call 211, or local law enforcement, to be connected to the Sexual Assault Services team. Services are provided on an appointment basis.
About the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay
The mission of the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay is to ensure that no one in our community has to face crisis alone. The organization is the community’s gateway to help, hope, and healing, and is Tampa Bay’s elite provider of crisis and trauma services. The nonprofit agency offers a range of evidence based programs designed to meet community needs:
• Corbett Trauma Center (trauma counseling and sexual assault survivor services)
• Gateway Contact Center (988 & 211: suicide prevention, crisis counseling, and information and referral services)
• TransCare (911 basic life support ambulance service, behavioral health transport, basic and advanced life support interfacility transportation, community paramedicine)
For more information about the Crisis Center of Tampa Bay, please visit www.crisiscenter.com