History

SAFE Alternatives for Everyone (S.A.F.E) was a grassroots effort initiated in 1998 by the Temecula Valley Womans Club. The endeavor was led by Founders Carol Niles and Nancy Acevedo. The women developed a “S.A.F.E. committee” in an effort to respond to the growing needs of domestic violence victims in the community.

S.A.F.E. later evolved from a committee into a thriving nonprofit committed to providing services for children, youth, and families who have experienced or are at risk of abuse and violence in Southwest Riverside County.

Recognizing the need to help prevent generational violence from occurring, S.A.F.E developed the Temecula Murrieta Police Activities League (now known as Riverside County PAL) in 2004. This program served as a collaborative partnership with the Murrieta and Temecula Police Department that provides mentorship to at-risk youth and is founded on the belief that early prevention and intervention for youth will reduce juvenile crime and violence.

S.A.F.E has prided itself in serving the needs of families affected by domestic violence for over 25 years. Our core mission and services seek to provide immediate needs for survivors such as: shelter, basic needs, safety planning, counseling, education, and outreach to victims and their children affected by extreme violence.

In 2004, S.A.F.E set out to provide trauma-informed assistance to victims in need and became a founding member and partner of the internationally recognized “Family Justice Center” movement in Riverside County.

S.A.F.E served as a leader for this movement and assisted with the creation of three regional victim service centers sponsored by the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office within the county.

This model was adopted to provide multiple community-based services to victims of crime under one roof, merging justice-based services and confidential community partners together.

In 2019, S.A.F.E sought to expand its adult and youth services within the County of Riverside and merged with the Riverside County Family Justice Centers to become the SAFE Family Justice Centers. The mission of SAFE Family Justice Centers is to provide comprehensive services that help protect families, seek justice, and promote SAFE futures for children, youth, and families who have been affected by violence.

The SAFE Family Justice Centers are committed to building partnerships that aim to serve all of the needs that victims in the community face by seeking to improve collaborative responses.