LEWISBURG, W.Va. (WVDN) – The Greenbrier County Elder Abuse Awareness Committee (GCEAC) is comprised of volunteers and local organizations whose mission is to promote community participation in a network designed to increase awareness and knowledge about resources that strive for prevention, identification, intervention, and legal justice for victims of elder abuse.
Elder Abuse is defined a single or repeated act, or lack of appropriate actions, which causes harm, risk of harm, or distress to an individual 55 years or older and occurs:
- within any relationship where there is an expectation of trust; or
- when the targeted act is directed towards an elder person by virtue of age or disabilities.
Elder abuse can be intentional or unintentional, can take various forms and includes but is not limited to physical, psychological, emotional or sexual abuse, neglect, abandonment and financial exploitation.
The Greenbrier County Elder Abuse Awareness Committee was initially formed in response to the death of a local elderly woman who was neglected by her relative caregivers. The committee was comprised of a small number of community members whose sole focus was to become educated on the abuse of elders and to begin expanding their membership. Today, the GCEAC has more than 20 committee members, consisting of volunteers and professionals in Greenbrier County who work with and/are concerned about the welfare of the elderly community.
Under past grant opportunities, the GCEAC was able to form an Elder Abuse Training Team. This team was comprised of a law enforcement officer, an assistant prosecuting attorney, a victim advocate and an adult protective services worker. The Elder Abuse Training Team provided training to law enforcement agencies and victim service providers within Greenbrier County to identify signs of abuse and ways to prevent abuse in the future.
Today, the GCEAC through grant opportunities can revive the previously established Elder Abuse Multi-Disciplinary Investigative Team, connect victims of elder abuse to the Abuse in Later Life Advocate employed by Family Refuge Center, conduct cross-training for law enforcement agencies, prosecutors, health care providers, population specific organizations, victim advocates, faith-based leaders, courts and first responders to better serve elder victims, and improve outreach, services, civil and criminal justice responses, prevention and support for victims of abuse.
For further information about the Greenbrier County Elder Abuse Awareness Committee, how to become a member or to seek services for elder abuse, contact Family Refuge Center at 304-645-6324. To make a report of Elder Abuse, contact Centralized Intake with WVDHHR or the crisis line at 1-800-352-6513.
