"The support is a life saver for me and others in this fight for justice."
—Crime Survivor
Celebrating 40 years of empowering victims to become victors.
For 40 years, Atlanta Victim Assistance, Inc. (AVA) has been an essential and unique resource for individuals and families in Atlanta to receive free and comprehensive support after experiencing the life-altering and devastating impacts of a crime. Since our inception in 1984, our compassionate team has delivered tailored programs and services to empower more than 150,000 victims of crime and their families to become victors, equipping them with the support needed to heal and thrive.
Join us in helping Atlanta’s crime victims become victors.
Make a tax-deductible donation.
For individuals and families without the necessary support and resources to recover from a crime, the damage extends far beyond the crime scene. Crime victims can experience life-altering trauma and the consequences can be devastating without help. Thanks to AVA’s comprehensive services developed over the last four decades, we have enabled hope and healing for thousands of victims each year.
But we need your help.
As a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, funding is our only limit to ensuring AVA’s support and resources are accessible to every person who needs them. We rely on the generosity of our community whose contributions allow us to offer our life-changing programs and services.
Make a donation today to help empower victims to heal, thrive, and become victors—today and well into the future.
Attend or support an AVA event.
Each year AVA organizes a variety of events to raise awareness about and support for AVA's valuable services. We also hold events specifically tailored to promote healing among survivors of crime and their families.
Our essential and unique mission brings hope to survivors.
Our mission is to advocate for the fundamental rights of victims while walking alongside them with compassion, dignity, and respect, and to aid in finding healing and justice.
AVA is unlike any other crime assistance organization in the United States. We are a nonprofit organization with unique and integrated partnerships with the Atlanta Police Department (APD), Atlanta Municipal Court, Atlanta Public Schools (APS), and more, which enable individuals and families to receive critical services as soon as possible in the aftermath of a crime.
"AVA has done great work in the community to assist and be available for victims of crime in the City of Atlanta. They do wonderful job partnering with city officials to make sure victims have a voice and both victim and families have the resources needed after a crime has occurred."
—Member of a Partner Organization
We focus on healing and resilience.
Over the last four decades, our programs and partnerships have allowed AVA to serve domestic violence survivors, children and youth witnesses of violence, survivors of a loved one’s homicide, sexual assault survivors, and many other Atlanta residents affected by crime. And unlike other crime assistance organizations, when there are crimes committed against people, AVA offers support to victims and witnesses regardless of the arrest status of the offender. For these victims, AVA is often the only organization connecting them with resources and helping them to cope, grieve and move forward with their lives.
Recognizing the long-lasting physical, emotional and psychological impacts of crime, AVA uses a holistic approach when delivering our programs and services and we focus on healing and resilience long after the crime. We are deeply committed to our work, providing victims and their families with the support and resources to transform their experiences into sources of strength and hope.
- We facilitate homicide support groups and recognition events like candlelight vigils to help grieving family members cope with the loss of a loved one due to crime. Loss is a deeply personal experience and in some cases when no arrest is made or the perpetrator isn’t identified, loved ones can experience long-lasting grief with no sense of closure. For many, these groups and memorial opportunities provide a source of comfort and healing for months and even years.
- Because victims often find themselves with limited resources—some having been forced to leave their homes or lost access to their belongings—they can access AVA's Closet for free to get essential items like food, clothing, toiletries, and more.
- We work to expedite Temporary Protective Orders (TPOs) to help domestic violence survivors keep themselves and their children safe from their abusers.
Our Compassionate Team
Our compassionate team knows all too well that anyone can be the victim of a crime. In addition to being highly trained and qualified, some of our team members have been personally affected by crime and profound loss. Their personal experiences combined with their professional expertise uniquely qualify them to address the complex emotions, fears, and challenges that emerge after a crime, and they are committed to walking alongside victims and their families on their path to healing.
"There's a proverb that says, 'Unrelenting disappointment leaves you heartsick, but a sudden good break can turn your life around.' Advocate services provided through AVA are important—no, CRUCIAL—because they lead victims to a point where they can believe that even in this perverse world, even when bad things happen to good people, one good break—one good referral—can turn life around!"
—AVA Team Member
The History of AVA
