Knoxville Family Justice Center Grows

Support center adds four rooms to serve clients

January 20, 2011
By Lydia X. McCoy
Knoxville News Sentinel

A couple of years after the Knoxville Family Justice Center opened, officials realized that they would need more space.

On Wednesday, the agency that provides victims of domestic violence access to advocacy and other services got its wish when it added four service rooms - three client service den areas and a play therapy room for children.

"In the past we've been overflowing with people. We had a lot of people who were waiting just because we didn't have enough space," said the center's executive director Amy Dilworth. "We can do that more efficiently to see more people at one time. Those who walk in for services, we can see them more quickly and efficiently."

The Knoxville Family Justice Center opened in May 2006. In its first year, the agency served 1,257 people. Now more than 2,000 people on average walk in to receive services.

Dilworth said the additional den areas, with warm colors on the wall, couches and lamps, allow clients to meet with an advocate in a comfortable setting.

"They can sit and have a conversation," she said. "It's not an office and they can relax."

The play therapy room, she said, is a place for children to go to deal with trauma related to domestic violence.