Four Montgomery County nonprofits that serve crime victims will split more than $1.4 million in federal grants, state Sen. Amanda Cappelletti announced Wednesday, Sept. 9.

The awards are part of $6.4 million in Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) funding approved by the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD) for agencies across Cappelletti's 17th Senate District, which spans parts of Delaware and Montgomery counties. The grants pay for crisis intervention, emergency shelter, counseling and court accompaniment. Among the recipients: the Women's Center of Montgomery County, which operates an office in Bryn Mawr and a 24/7 hotline at 1-800-773-2424.

The Victim Services Center of Montgomery County received the largest local share at $483,140 to support survivors of sexual assault and other crimes. The agency describes itself as the county's only comprehensive victim services center. Executive Director Mary Onama spoke at a Red Sand Project human trafficking awareness event in Norristown on July 30, alongside Stacy Dougherty, executive director of Laurel House, and Maria Macaluso, executive director of the Women's Center.

The Women's Center will receive $418,797 for domestic violence services. Laurel House, a domestic violence agency founded in 1980 that runs a nine-bedroom emergency shelter, will receive $368,170. The Child Advocacy Center of Montgomery County will receive $174,116 for coordinated child abuse response.

The funding is federal. Cappelletti said in a statement that the grants ensure every neighbor has access to a support system when they need it most.

At the July 30 Red Sand event, Cappelletti had stressed the local stakes of victim services work. "These tragedies impact our neighborhoods, schools and community spaces right here in Montgomery County," she said at the time. "Yet survivors fall through the cracks far too often and are left without resources and help they need to heal."

The remaining $5 million in the district-wide package goes to organizations in Delaware County and to multi-county agencies. The largest single award, $1.77 million, went to the SeniorLAW Center for its Keeping Elder Victims S.A.F.E. program. Other recipients include Legal Aid of Southeastern Pennsylvania ($495,005), CASA Youth Advocates ($371,454) and the Delaware County Victim Assistance Center ($795,493). Other state senators announced similar VOCA packages for their districts on the same day.

Laurel House's annual Breaking the Silence Breakfast fundraiser is scheduled for Sept. 24 at The Belle at Blue Bell Country Club.