River House, Inc. formerly known as River House Shelter & Domestic Crisis Services Office Phone: 989-348-3169 24 Hour Crisis Phone: 888-554-3169

Getting Help

Calling for Help
What to do if Sexually Assaulted
Other Help Resources
Other Useful Web Sites

Calling for Help

If you are in immediate danger dial 911 from a phone in Crawford, Roscommon, Ogemaw or Oscoda counties, the closest available and appropriate (Police, Ambulance or Fire Department) emergency service will be dispatched.

Contacting River House, Inc.
The 24-hour River House Crisis Phone is toll free, 888-554-3169. (The toll free number does not show up on your long distance phone bill.)

Business phone: 989-348-3169 (If you dial long distance, a record of this call may show up on your long distance telephone bill.)

Fax: 989-348-1719 (If you dial long distance, a record of this call may show up on your telephone bill.)

E-mail:

Mailing address:
River House, Inc.
P.O. Box 661
Grayling, MI 49738

For those who want to contact River House, Inc. via the Internet and don't want to use e-mail or don't have an e-mail service, the following form may be submitted.

See the Safety Practices page for instructions on deleting sent e-mail messages, Web page history and Web page cache files.

Crawford County non-emergency police numbers

State Police	989-422-5101
Sheriff's Dept.	989-348-4616
Grayling Police	989-348-4621

Roscommon County non-emergency police numbers

Non-emergency Central Dispatch for all police agencies in county	989-275-0911
State Police	989-422-5101
Sheriff's Dept.	989-275-5101
Richfield Twp.	989-389-4071
Denton Twp.	989-366-4518
Gerrish Twp.	989-821-5207

Ogemaw County non-emergency police numbers

State Police	989-345-0955
Sheriff's Dept.	989-345-3111
West Branch City Police	989-345-2627
Rose City Police	989-685-3051

Oscoda County non-emergency police numbers

State Police	989-826-2316
Sheriff's Dept.	989-826-3214

What to do if Sexually Assaulted

1. Get to a safe place.
2. Do NOT shower, bathe, douche, brush your teeth, change or destroy your clothing or straighten up the area where the assault occurred. Doing any of these may destroy evidence.
3. Contact someone you trust.
4. Call a rape crisis program for support and information or call the police department where the assault occurred.
5. See a doctor to be treated for injuries, tested and treated for pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases and to collect and document medical evidence in case you decide to prosecute. If you report the crime within 48 hours you may be eligible for victims compensation to cover the cost of medical treatment.
6. Don't blame yourself. Many survivors of sexual assault think the attack was their fault. But sexual assault is never the victim's fault. Here are some important things to keep in mind:
   • Sexual assault is a crime of violence and control. It is not an impulsive act of passion, but an act of violence against another human being.
   • Most sexual assaults are planned, and are not spontaneous acts. Females and males of all ages, races, socioeconomic groups, neighborhoods, and life styles can become victims.
   • No one asks to be sexually assaulted. Assailants choose as victims those they see as vulnerable.
   • Most often, sexual assault is committed in the victim's own home by someone the victim knows: a relative, friend, date, neighbor or other acquaintance.
   • Sexual assault is a punishable crime. In Michigan, the legal term for this type of crime is Criminal Sexual Conduct.

Other Help Resources

In addition to emergency help, River House, Inc. offers other services. Please see our Programs and Services Web page.

Other Useful Web Sites

Mercy Hospital Grayling
http://mercygrayling.munsonhealthcare.org

West Branch Regional Medical Center
www.wbrmc.com

Crawford County Commission on Aging
http://www.crawfordcoa.org/

Michigan Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence
www.mcadsv.org

Michigan Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence Resource Library
www.mcadsv.org/mrcdsv

National Domestic Violence Hotline
www.ndvh.org

National Sexual Assault Hotline
www.rainn.org

Family Violence Prevention Fund
www.fvpf.org

MaleSurvivor: National Organization against Male Sexual Victimization
www.malesurvivor.org

Michigan's Benchbook on Domestic Violence
www.courts.michigan.gov/mji/resources/dvbook/dvbook.htm

National Coalition Against Domestic Violence
www.ncadv.org

Family Violence Prevention Fund
endabuse.org

Feminist Majority Foundation - Domestic Violence Information Center
www.feminist.org/other/dv/dvhome.html

National Organization for Women - Page on violence against women
www.now.org/issues/violence

Working to Halt Online Abuse
www.haltabuse.org

Are You Being Stalked? Tips for Protection
www.privacyrights.org/fs/fs14-stk.htm

Batterers Intervention Services Coalition of Michigan
www.biscmi.org

White Ribbon Campaign
www.whiteribbon.ca

Center for the Prevention of Sexual and Domestic Violence
www.cpsdv.org

Bibliography of Sources on Sexual and Domestic Violence in the Jewish Community
www.mincava.umn.edu/bibs/jewish.htm

Muslim Women's Help Network
www.muslimsonline.com/mwhn

Domestic Violence in the African American Community
www.dvinstitute.org

New York Asian Women's Center
www.nyawc.org

South Asian Women's Net
www.umiacs.umd.edu/users/sawweb/sawnet

Fact Sheet on Dating Violence from the Center for Disease Control
www.cdc.gov/ncipc/dvp/youth/datviol.htm

When Love Hurts: A Guide for Girls on Love, Respect, and Abuse in Relationships
www.dvirc.org.au/whenlove

Cruelty to Animals
www.hsus.org/firststrike
This page is the American Humane Society's website on the connection between violence to humans and violence to animals.

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