MESA Fact Sheet
2023 At-a-Glance
26
Number of support group sessions for survivors of sexual violence.
1,773
Number of calls and texts to our 24/7 sexual violence hotline answered.
6,918
Number of hours worked by our Hotline Advocates and volunteers.
Get to Know MESA
As Boulder County’s only Sexual Violence Resource Center, MESA offers a free, anonymous, confidential 24/7 hotline (303-443-7300) and text line (BRAVE to 20121) for any topics or questions related to sexual violence. MESA volunteer advocates offer:
- immediate emotional support
- accompaniment to the hospital for forensic evidence collection by a Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE)
- accompaniment to courts or police stations
- information and referrals to community resources
- Those who have experienced any form of sexual violence
- Those who are struggling with a history of sexual trauma
- Those who are not sure if they have been sexually assaulted or harassed
- Friends and families of survivors
- Service providers working with survivors
MESA partners with local Boulder County hospitals to respond to requests for advocacy from sexual violence survivors. MESA’s volunteer advocates meet with the survivor at the hospital to offer comfort, support, and guidance through the process of forensic evidence collection with a Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE).
MESA’s volunteer advocates will accompany the survivor throughout the justice system process, including to the police station, throughout the investigation, and at court appearances. The advocate will always respect any decision to report or not report to law enforcement and whether to start or stop cooperating in an investigation. The advocate is 100% confidential and will not file a report on a survivor’s behalf, except where mandatory reporting is required by law.
In addition to the hotline, text line, and advocacy through the justice system, MESA offers other services intermittently:
- Sexual violence support groups
- Trauma-informed yoga classes
- Acupuncture
MESA provides advocacy, prevention education, and outreach. MESA does not offer any therapy services and is not a clinical treatment team. However, Moving Beyond Trauma (MBT) is MESA’s sister program through Clinica Family Health & Wellness and provides trauma-informed therapy services in a clinical setting. MESA’s volunteer advocates can assist survivors in starting therapy services with MBT or survivors can call Clinica Family Health & Wellness directly at 303-443-8500.
What survivors can expect when they call to start therapy:
- A series of questions to determine what kind of services are needed
- Demographic questions
- Insurance questions (Medicaid, private insurance, and self-pay accepted; financial assistance available)
MESA’s prevention education programs empower participants to lead the community in the transformation of our current culture, which normalizes and encourages sexual violence, into a culture based on consent, safety and respect. MESA educates staff and students in Boulder County schools, corporate groups, law enforcement and justice system professionals, and other advocacy organizations. MESA can customize any prevention education program to suit any group. Popular topics include:
- Sexual Violence 101
- What is Consent?
- Boundaries
- Rape Culture
- Healthy Relationships
- Responding to Student Disclosures
- Healthy Masculinities
- Sexual Harassment in the Workplace
- Bystander Intervention
- Trauma-informed Services
- Help for the Helper
- Working with a Sexual Violence Survivor
Sexual violence is a serious public health problem in the United States that profoundly impacts lifelong health, opportunity, and well-being. Sexual violence impacts every community and affects people of all genders, sexual orientations, and ages. Anyone can experience or perpetrate sexual violence. MESA brings community members together to speak out about sexual violence, relationship violence, and other forms of interpersonal violence. MESA donors want to help heal those among us who are traumatized by violence today – and to create healthy families and communities free of violence tomorrow.