Emerge Center Against Domestic Abuse - Tucson, Arizona

Ann

Emerge Center in Tucson AZ has a warm and fuzzy website, but inside shelter they could care less about you.
I was a client for 7 weeks.
#1207
The staff steals the gifts for clients and uses them for their own usage.
They perform fraud when they show they give clients vouchers or gift cards and sign off on them like they gave it to a client when staff didn't give anything.
"Emerge Center is not responsible for damage to your property in room or their parking lot in front which is so dark you can't see, so unsafe
The only people who had access to your rooms are staff and maintenance.
Two suitcase were broke into and damaged when I was gone.
I keep my bags locked.
If Emerge Center wanted to search wait till I'm there.
Luis, maintenance man enters freely into female and children's room.
I caught Luis and David in my bathroom, standing there looking through my things
Luis told me "he can have access to rooms whenever, because he has worked at Emerge 5 years."
My car was broken into and damaged in Emerge Center parking lot after I complained about the maintenance man Luis.
I made a police report.
Vanessa B. , a caseworker at Emerge center was so abusive, she met with me 1 time in 6 weeks. Vanessa B. would call real quick then tell you she has to go.
Tameka/ Star, shelter manager was so abusive, she wouldn't let the police come to the shelter after my car was broken into.
Tameka/Star told me because I wasn't in my room when they delivered Christmas gifts, I missed out.
No, staff kept my Christmas gifts.

No groups, no clinician's.
My clinician left on medical leave Dec 1st.
Nobody met with me until Dec 25th, new social worker 1hr, to tell me next appointment was on 1-6-25.

The windows in new shelter are 20ft high up you can't cover them, so every night you have drones hovering above shelter looking in all the female and children's windows from above. They can see everything, even in your bed and in the bathroom.

I'm filing official complaints against Emerge Center with DES/state and their Federal funding and local funding.
The City of Tucson donated 1 million, The County of Tucson donated 1 million and a lot of money came from private donors.

A investigation and AUDIT is needed.
Quit keeping what's allotted for clients, for your own personal use, staff.
When you ask for help, "we don't do that."
Really, what do you do?
Where's the domestic violence support?

AN INVESTIGATION AND AUDIT IS NEEDED!

Frank Fernandez

This agency coaches people on how to manipulate the immigration system & make false allegations to gain citizenship through the VOWA act.
Case law available upon request at the Pima County Superior Court. This agency should be ashamed of its self !

Alisia

Although it's been over five years since I left Arizona and my abuser, I can truly say this place saved my life. It took moving across the country to have a peace of mind. I've been single and happy every since. They took us in a couple of times until I was able to move into my own place. Thank you from the bottom of my heart Emerge.

Ella Umbrella

I've been told I deserve it. No one deserves to be isolated, abused, and lose the life that is their own no matter how many ways they are shown the opposite. They are so charismatic, always so social the one telling the stories and controlling the interaction. I lost years and I have again. Realizing who I was once I wasn't within reach changed my life forever. Going back to who I wasn't has been the worst thing I've ever been forced to do, it's nice when their are places like this that look a little closer hopefully....

Rachael London

Just want to thank this place, their hotline is amazing and they are brave for the work they do. This is no exaggeration. I can't speak for all their services but from my experience, they're exceptionally good people. They really are amazing in their patience and their ability to get the complexity of abuse. If you need help, it's a hard position to be in and feels impossible to deal with in our current society but it is heartening and fortunate to weather the storm with people that work at this place. No magic wand, better to catch some light from Emerge. Thanks for being a pebble of goodness in the world.

Cassie Bauer

If I could give them one star, I would. Emerge spoke on my behalf as a "victim" in a widely publicized domestic violence case in March—without my consent or even reaching out to me. I tried to give them the benefit of the doubt and reached out to them myself, but once again, there was no follow-up. This isn't the first time I've heard similar complaints from other "victims" in the same situation. As I told Sheriff Nanos, "Do better and be better. Stop using your platform for personal gain." Actually help us SURVIVORS and find real ways to prevent more people from becoming just another statistic.

Michelle Bonîn

The staff that I have encountered have been nothing but kind caring and very accommodating, even though the resources are limited due to the covid scare. Abby couldn't ask for a better domestic abuse coach she spent hours on the phone with me and not once did I feel rushed nor did I feel like I was a burden or a bother she's an amazing asset to this organization .

Now for my update, well as soon as I gave my amazing and nothing but positive review of this organization I left messages three days in a row in which their legal department did not return and I was told I would receive a phone call on Tuesday which is 4 days later and that's when I decided to leave messages for three days in a row with no return call nothing this is from their legal department. I guess once you give a positive and outstanding review you're not needed and you're just started and I had explained to the person in the legal department and two other staff members that the last Advocate that I reached out to betrayed me and spoke to my abuser and then this happens. I was reassured that they would be there for me and nothing like that will ever happen well nothing like that happened but they're not there for me once I gave this impeccable review about this organization. So once again my abuser is Victorious! Very disheartening any victim leaving them deflated and defeated once again.

Oh this is my newest review on 6/30/22.
Well I've reached back out to emerge thinking that maybe it was just a bad day or just overwhelmed and their legal department.
Nope
Not not a concern for myself let alone my son. I would think they would at least be their knowing that I have a child who has witnessed who has heard this abuse their whole life and I expressed concern of the damage and learned behavior of his father and absolutely blew me off again. Apologize over the top for the last time and went and did the same exact thing again. It's quite concerning the disheartening especially since Arizona has one of the highest rates for domestic violence and domestic abuse. I believe out of all of the states we are either number three or number five on the domestic abuse list. Great for the abusers not so great for the victims. I don't know where they think that they're being Advocates when they don't even follow through with what they say they're going to do. And you wonder why abuse is so high in our state hmm? Because these predators know that they have an advantage in this state and it's the lack of caring the lack of commitment and the lack of involvement and resources. So wouldn't that make these people these advocates Predators as well? Food for thought..

Carole Pigman

Thank you, EMERGE! I have worked with DV survivors and traumatized children and adults my entire professional career. Never thought my children and I would be victims and now survivors! EMERGE was there for me and my children when authorities and politicians in Oregon served to further attack and threaten me and my children for reporting my ex-husband 7 years ago! We have continued to receive threats and our case is MASSIVE bc my 2 youngest were internationally adopted as babies from China and Vietnam! EMERGE was there every time we have been threatened and were equally frightened for our safety!! We since severed his parental rights in the Arizona Superior Court which is considered monumental especially with 2 internationally adopted children and the abuse they suffered, we all suffered! Thank you, we hope to pay it forward one day! Those in positions of authority who violated my children basic as well as civil rights will be held accountable! I don't want to get into the legalities of international adoptive suffice it to say child predators are using international adoption as a means to fuel their depravity!