Dove, Inc.

It is hard to believe that in just a couple of weeks it will have been twenty years since I walked into the Dove Domestic Violence Program office in Shelbyville for the first time.   Interviews and the actual hiring had been done from the Dove offices in Decatur, so a few days before I was to start my job, I had to go on a driving tour of Shelbyville to find the office.   If you are familiar with our town you are no doubt laughing by now….it is by no means a large city.   The office is located very well for privacy for our clients, however, on the outskirts of town.   I walked in that morning alone;   one of my coworkers from another county would arrive soon to begin to show me the ropes.   I was excited, nervous, had little clue what I was going to be doing and I wasn’t 100% sure I knew how to do whatever that turned out to be.   The permanent office had been in existence for about four months, but my position had been vacant for about half of that...

 Did you know that Dove started July 7, 1970 in partnership with several churches in the area with a focus on helping others? Today Dove has grown to include numerous programs all working together to uphold Doves mission and serve our communities.       Dove is a coalition of religious organizations, volunteers, and advocates that seek to coordinate efforts to address unmet human needs and social injustices. Dove works for justice, equality and understanding among all people. As the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program Director I am in awe of all that Dove programs accomplish every day. Without the help and support form partner churches, area organizations, donors, and volunteers Dove would not be as successful as you make us! From programs that have been hosted by Dove for years to the just starting Senior Companion Program Dove works to stay up to date with the needs of others. They do that by changing to adapt to the times. Today is no different ...

Most of us were around in 1970. It’s normal to ask what were you doing on July 7, 1970. Avoiding an embarrassing answer for you, here’s what was happening. We remember we were in a very unpopular war. Protests sprung up everywhere. Young men left the US for Canada. The country was unsettled. The Aswan Dam in Egypt was being constructed. The USSR and France were conducting nuclear tests. Northern Ireland was in conflict. The US would soon launch Venera 7, for a 1st soft landing on Venus. However, a bright spot shined right here in Decatur. DOVE was formed. Eight churches agreed to support a new ministry to be called Disciples on Volunteer Enlistment (DOVE). First Christian (Bethany), First Christian (Blue Mound), Central Christian, First Christian and Prairie Avenue Christian Church (Decatur), Harristown Christian, Illiopolis Christian and Niantic Christian. Ray Batman was the first DOVE Coordinator with a whopping first budget of $6,380. His office was in the furnace room of D...

Dove hosted a Press Conference, outside, 10:15 a.m. the morning of July 7.  Dove is commemorating its 50th Anniversary this year.  7/7/70, the first Coordinator, Ray Batman reported to work to begin this ministry of Dove. As luck would have it, the warning sirens which usually are tested at 10:00 a.m. on the first Tuesday of each month in Decatur, were late, going off about 10:17.  This needed test pretty much rang the whole time Teri Ducy, Domestic Violence Program Director,  was sharing her 2 minute speech at the Press Conference, and made it pretty hard to hear.  So below is her comments: Good morning.   As I think about the overall theme of this special day – in recognition of Dove’s 50 th Anniversary,   “Needed then….Vital now” – I find this to be very fitting.   Back in the early 70’s – which was at just the beginning of the domestic violence movement – there were no shelters – only safe houses in some communities – private hom...