Advocacy for victims of domestic abuse available in Shelley

SHELLEY — Advocacy and support for victims of domestic abuse and sexual violence are available for those living in the Shelley and Firth areas.

The Bingham Crisis Center, located at 288 N Shilling in Blackfoot, has made efforts to expand its reach into northing Bingham County. Twice a week, an advocate from the center is at Shelley City Hall, 101 S Emmerson Ave., for anyone who needs help.

“(Lesa Padilla), she’s out there to help with protection orders and discuss situations with those in the Shelley and Firth area that might need it,” Bingham Crisis Center Executive Director Scott Smith told Community Pioneer.

Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., anyone needing help can go to Shelley City Hall and ask for the crisis center advocate.
“I’m more than happy to help,” Lesa Padilla, a Bingham Crisis Center advocate, said.

The center is a nonprofit that helps victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. As well as assisting in filing protection orders, they also offer a full-time counselor to help victims deal with trauma.

“All of our services are free,” Smith said. “If somebody has been in a situation, just contact us. From there, our advocates are trained to ask the right questions to be able to determine what, if anything, we’re able to do.”

Padilla began working for Bingham Crisis Center in February of 2019.

“I was looking for a job in Shelley and saw that the Bingham Crisis Center was expanding to a Shelley location, after an interview, I felt the love of the workers have for our Bingham community. I felt the compassion that they have for individuals in need and I wanted to be apart of that,” Padilla said.

The center can provide its services for free through grants and donations.

“We receive quite a bit of different monies from state and federal level grants. Then, in our area, donations are huge,” Smith said.

Anyone who would like to donate to Bingham Crisis Center can do so by calling them at 208-785-1047 or visiting their office in Blackfoot.

“The Bingham Crisis Center really cares and works so hard to help our community in so many ways,” Padilla said.