Alternative Horizons

  Alternative Horizons Corporation (AHC) was established in 1978 with the purpose of providing advocacy, support, and assistance to survivors of domestic violence in rural La Plata and San Juan Counties. The mission of Alternative Horizons is to provide advocacy and resources to survivors of domestic violence and their children, while striving to promote community awareness through education and prevention efforts. Alternative Horizons Corporation is committed to providing free, confidential, inclusive, accessible, and voluntary services to all survivors of domestic violence in the service area of La Plata and San Juan Counties. The agency strives to extend culturally sensitive, relevant, survivor-defined and trauma informed care to traditionally underserved survivors who face significant barriers in accessing and using domestic violence services. This includes survivors underserved due to their geographic location, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, race, ethnicity, language, differences in abilities, immigration status, and age. AHC strongly believes that survivors of domestic violence have the right to make their own decisions and receive services that work for their individual needs and lived experiences.

 AHC was founded by a group of women who believed that no one had the right to abuse or control another person, regardless of their relationship with each other. This group of women, many of whom were survivors of domestic violence, humbly committed themselves to ensuring that survivors were not alone in their experience of victimization. The founders collected donations for a hotline telephone and volunteered to respond to calls 24-hours a day. They organized a volunteer Board of Directors and established AHC as a non-profit organization. They educated the community about domestic violence, which at the time was regarded as a private family issue that remained hidden behind closed doors. These steadfast women began a service that thousands of survivors have benefitted from since 1978.