FRANKFORT, Ky. – On September 10, 2025, Kentucky’s 15 state-designated domestic violence programs served 1,411 adult and child victims of domestic violence, answered 177 hotline contacts, and provided 17 educational sessions and trainings to their communities, according to the latest Domestic Violence Counts Report from the National Network to End Domestic Violence (NNEDV).
On that same day, alarmingly, 222 requests for help went unmet due to capacity limitations.
ZeroV, Kentucky’s coalition of state-designated domestic violence programs, joins NNEDV in launching the report. For twenty years, Domestic Violence Counts has been the premier trusted source of data on the lifesaving services domestic violence advocates provide to survivors.
“It is clear from the Domestic Violence Counts Report that far too many people are suffering from the violent and coercive actions of abusive partners,” says ZeroV CEO Tisha Pletcher. “We are grateful for our legislature’s continued investment in Kentucky’s domestic violence programs so that we can serve the survivors that our capacity allows.”
Every day, ZeroV member program advocates answer calls from survivors, attend court with them, help them seek safe housing, make sure their children have school supplies, and much more to support them in rebuilding their lives.
“Our advocates do incredible work, putting their heart and soul into supporting their fellow Kentuckians,” says Pletcher. “Unfortunately, domestic violence is so prevalent that we are unable to meet the needs of everyone who reaches out. And we know that the survivors who are reaching out are only a portion of the people experiencing abuse.”
To reduce the rate of domestic violence, ZeroV and its member programs provide direct support to survivors, educational presentations to community members and organizations, domestic violence trainings to professionals, and policy advocacy for systems-level change. However, the responsibility to end domestic violence rests not only on organizations, but on all individuals. Everyone knows someone who has experienced domestic violence. Ensuring that individuals respond to survivors in supportive ways creates pathways to safety for survivors and paves the way toward a future free from domestic violence.
Kentuckians can get involved in the work to reduce the prevalence of domestic violence by learning more about abuse, supporting survivors in their own lives, and engaging with their local domestic violence programs. Learn more about Kentucky’s domestic violence programs at https://www.zerov.org/shelter_programs.
Learn more in NNEDV’s 20th Annual Domestic Violence Counts Report.
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ZeroV is Kentucky’s statewide voice on ending intimate partner violence in our homes and communities. The nonprofit represents and supports 15 state-designated domestic violence shelters that serve all 120 counties of the Commonwealth. ZeroV also works to address the systemic causes and far-reaching impacts of intimate partner violence by providing critical thought leadership on the intersecting needs of survivors and partnering with government agencies, nonprofits, and private organizations to make meaningful and lasting change.
