by Steve Wright

The Family Healing Center will be sharing with KRL’s readers about the things they do once a month.

About Family Healing Center:

Founder Dr. Margie Jessen DNP and Co-founder Steven H. Wright, retired Chief of Police for the city of Reedley, created the Family Healing Center (FHC) in 2007 with the purpose of providing a holistic abuse center for victims of violent crimes focusing on sexual and physical abuse as well as assisting women and children who witness abuse. In the past, victims of rape, child abuse, and sexual assault endured being interviewed by multiple organizations and agencies, throughout the investigative process. Although multiple services exist within Fresno County, victims are still subject to varying wait times and multiple locations for follow-up care. Specialists have noted that many women and children remain at risk for re-victimization during this waiting period immediately following the assault. In response to this, FHC opened in 2011 to provide forensic interviews for children (MDIC-Multidisciplinary Interview Center), forensic medical evidentiary examinations, medical screenings and follow-ups, therapeutic interventions, and faith-based interventions upon request.

To date, FHC has served over 3,000 victims and families who are hurting and broken from abuse. FHC works in conjunction with other organizations to better facilitate victims’ services and is a welcoming place where women and children can feel safe and free from distractions or public scrutiny. Dr. Margie Jessen DNP, Co-Founder of FHC, has been a nurse for 19 years and is a nationally certified pediatric Sexual Assault Examiner specializing in forensics, holds a Doctorate in Nursing Practice, and is a family nurse practitioner. Starting out as a trauma nurse at UMC, she found her true calling from God to serve victims of sexual assault and domestic violence in 1999. She is now the owner of Forensic Nurse Specialists of Central CA, Inc., which covers the entire Central Valley—Merced thru Kern counties. Her team of forensic nurses provides forensic evidence examinations to local law enforcement while treating victims in a comforting and compassionate manner. It was during her time as a forensic nurse that Dr. Jessen felt she was being called to offer victims more services all under one roof and provide wrap around services for Fresno County.

Family Healing Center provides an urgent response in a Christ-centered, safe environment that welcomes and loves every mother, child, and family broken by the pain of sexual abuse and domestic violence. Healing becomes a possibility as FHC provides compassionate forensic interviewing of children, physical evaluations, and medical follow up with expert advice, therapeutic/mental health interventions for children and families, and education for survivors and their families.

Our goal is to continue to transform pain and suffering into whole and healthy lives. Those who are hurting need our compassion and action to aide them physically, emotionally, and spiritually. The Family Healing Center intends to inform the public about Child Abuse and Sexual Assault by periodically submitting informational articles to Kings River Life Magazine. We hope that by raising awareness to this serious problem in our communities we can, with your help, reduce if not eliminate this horrible crime and the damage it does to our children, families, and society. You can help in many ways. Please visit our website at www.fhcfresno.org, send us an email and request training in your neighborhood, or donate to help fund our program.