IRVINE : Shelter for Battered Women to Be Built
- Share via
Human Options, a group that operates shelters for battered women, will break ground this week for its third facility in Orange County.
The expansion is possible, an official said, in part because of increasing attention to the issue of domestic violence since O.J. Simpson was accused of murdering his wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, a year ago.
“The project has caught the imagination of people, and in that sense the Simpson trial has helped our efforts,” said Jeri Rimel, director of Human Options’ fund raising.
In nine months, Rimel said, the group raised the $3.2 million it needed to begin work on an Irvine facility, which will offer housing for as long as six weeks to victims of domestic violence.
Rimel said that government agencies and corporate donors came forward.
Charles Haggerty, one of two corporate leaders of the project, said he was pleased with the results.
“It has been very rewarding,” said Haggerty, who is president of Irvine-based computer maker Western Digital Corp.
Sign up for Essential California
The most important California stories and recommendations in your inbox every morning.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
