History

 Serene Harbor became incorporated in February 1992, our First Board President, and Spokes Person, stepped forward and shared her compelling story with the community in an effort to gain support.

In June of that same year the Chief Judge of Brevard County, Judge John Antoon, called a community wide meeting to discuss ways to address the ever expanding need for safe shelter for survivors of Domestic Violence and their families in south Brevard.

Following that meeting, Serene Harbor’s Board and supporters agreed to undertake the challenge and address this critically unmet need.

The first shelter was opened in December 1993 and offered safe haven to 6 families.  Within the first week of operation the shelter was overflowing and referrals were being made to other facilities as far away as north Brevard and in some cases outside the county. It became glaringly apparent that Serene Harbor’s Board, Director, and their supporters had indeed uncovered a serious need for services. With the Board and communities support, the Director set out to meet the need and plans were under way to purchase a larger more permanent facility. 

In April 1995, after much planning, effort, time and hard work on the part of the community, Serene Harbor opened the existing shelter facility with a 16 bed capacity, a large living and dining area, a playroom for the children, office space and a large backyard.

In 1996, the shelter obtain Licensing and funding from the Florida Department of Children and Families and United Way which continued to help the program grow.

 In 1999, we expanded the children’s shelter program and took outreach to elementary schools. In October 2000, we began an emergency room intervention program for domestic violence victims at Holmes Regional. In May 2001 we opened the transitional housing facility for women and children at risk for repeating the cycle of violence without further intervention. In January and October 2003 we expanded the children’s counseling program to include two structured groups each week, which follow the “Peace Makers” curriculum, teaching the children how to deal with conflict in an appropriate way.  In addition, we developed a new intake for children over 6 years old. This extensive intake is performed by the Counselor and gives us a better view of the child’s perception of their situation and the resulting problems they are experiencing. We are very encouraged by the progress we see these children making as a result of the program’s expansion. ”. In April, 2004 the transfer of the transitional housing facility operations to The Women’s Center, an affordable housing provider, was completed. We continue to provide outreach services to these clients through referrals from the Women’s Center, while our clients access Transitional Housing services through referral to this program.

The success we enjoy today is due in large part to many key players in our community. Many local corporations, businesses, churches and foundations lend financial as well as in-kind support as they help us to provide for the needs of our community. As word of our capital improvement plan spread we have received positive feedback and encouragement from the community. Some of our long time supporters are listed below. Health/First Holmes Regional Medical Center, Palm Bay Community Hospital, Brevard County Board of County Commissioners, Cities of Palm Bay and Melbourne, United Way of Brevard County, Palm Bay and Melbourne Police Departments, Brevard County Sheriff’s Office, Junior League of South Brevard, Danella Construction Corp., Jones Foundation, Circles of Care, State Vocational Rehabilitation, Florida Tech University, Rollins College, Brevard Community College, Town of Malabar, Auntie Ann’s, Renaissance Mortgage Group, Elite Real Estate, Tensorex Engineering, Mercedes Homes, Lennar Homes, Stevens/Bassett Furniture, DRS Group, The Boeing Company, NFL Alumni, Miami Dolphin 1972 Team Alumni,  Genoni Family Foundation, Northrop Grumman, Community Educators Credit Union, MAI Architecture, Intersil Corporation, Harris Corporation, and many churches and individuals too numerous to mention.