Vivian Clecak, MSW, LCSW - CEO and Founder

One in three women in the United States is a victim of domestic violence at some point in her life. Stunned by this statistic, I and three other founders (Carolyn Churm, Anne Wright and Margaret Thoreau) knew we needed to help and had to make a permanent change.

Our vision: a world in which no woman or child should ever feel afraid in her/his home.

I began my role as founding director in 1981. In the past 28 years, we have grown from a small grassroots agency to a multiservice, countywide program which breaks the cycle of domestic violence at every stage.

Highly trained, experienced professionals and volunteers staff our organization. To date we have served:
•    23,347 individuals in our counseling and shelter programs
•    50,503 hotline crisis
•    219,724 youth in our prevention programs

Through research, education and the art of listening, Human Options has grown and continues to grow. We listen to our clients to find out exactly what they need to become free from domestic violence. With this information and our comprehensive research, we continue to develop and strengthen our programs.

We are one of the very few emergency programs to do such research in the nation. Independent academic research has found that 90% of graduates of our emergency shelter and transitional living program are violence free one year or more after graduation.

Human Options is the product of a committed, caring community. We invite you to become part of a community that makes the difference.

Vivian Clecak LCSW
Founder, CEO