Victims Resource Center holds first of two anniversary celebrations

Victims Resource Center (VRC) celebrated its 50th anniversary on Tuesday night in the rotunda of the Luzerne County Courthouse. The event was the first of two that will recognize the 50th anniversary of the group’s founding.

Originally established in 1974 as Luzerne County Women Organized Against Rape, VRC has helped countless crime victims in and around Luzerne County throughout its 50 years of existence. Since its founding, VRC has expanded its reach to help crime victims in Wyoming and Carbon counties as well.

Victims Resource Center’s chairman of the board is Tom Mosca, who said that the core of the organization is fairly straightforward.

“Everything is geared toward providing needed services to victims and survivors of crime,” said Mosca.

Carol Lavery, VRC’s first executive director, was at Tuesday’s event to receive the Lifetime Advocate Award. She said the idea of her receiving the award at the Luzerne County Courthouse would have been practically unthinkable 50 years ago.

“Back in 1974, individual activism in the justice system, even neighborhood crime watch, any involvement from citizens, was not encouraged, was not appreciated. If anything, it was blocked.” Lavery said.

She continued: “Organizations such as Luzerne County Women Organized Against Rape were considered a threat, a nuisance.”

According to Lavery, many of the organization’s most basic initiatives, such as being a court companion to victims, were considered an affront to the status quo.

The group faced institutional pushback beyond the justice system. Lavery made clear that the local press of the mid-1970s made the group appear less than legitimate. She noted that jabs, such as misprinting the group’s anagram, were commonplace.

Lavery said the narrative about VRC and other similar groups has shifted dramatically in the past few decades, beginning around the late 1980s. One of the more important shifts came in the way those in the media talked to victims in the formation of their stories.

“I spent many years, both while at VRC and then later, working with different members of the press in how to positively talk to victims, how to interview victims, and do it in a caring, compassionate way that benefits the victims,” said Lavery.

Efforts like these have paid off, considering Victims Resource Center has reached its 50th year. The group’s leaders these days have carried forth the advocate spirit displayed by Lavery and her peers.

Victims Resource Center’s current Chief Executive Officer Suzanne Beck said that the strong foundation established by the organization’s founders has made 50 years of service possible.

“We are one of the older victim service centers in the commonwealth,” said Beck. “I think that that’s really a credit to those early volunteers and board members who established the strong foundation, because we would not have been able to survive without that.”

In one of the evening’s more somber moments, Luzerne County Manager Romilda Crocamo offered a portrait of the kind of assistance that is provided by Victims Resource Center. Crocamo referred to a family tragedy for which the VRC offered their services.

“They work with individuals like me,” Crocamo said before pausing for an extended moment. “The Victim Resource Center stood by me in a time of crisis when I lost my niece, who was murdered by her husband. And for that, I am eternally grateful.”

Indeed, Lavery said she hopes the good work of Victim Resource Center has continued to the next generation of advocates, noting in her speech that the original members in 1974 were, on average, in their mid 20s.

“I come from a generation in which we are attempting to pass that baton onto the activists that we hope are stepping up,” Lavery said.