It is sadly ironic that an agency that helps women — and men — get out of bad situations is now facing one of its own.

That is essentially the case with the Lawrence County Domestic Violence Shelter. It is an agency that operates on a bare-bones budget to start with and matters have only gotten worse because its dwindling revenue and ever-increasing expenses.

Considering all the services for shelter provides to those who are trying to get out of abusive relationships, it makes the funds go a pretty long way.

Director Elaine Payne is hoping churches and other organizations that make charitable donations will not forget about the important work the shelter does and include them in the list of programs in need of assistance.

Donations can be sent to P. O. Box 311, Ironton, OH.

We certainly agree that the shelter fulfills a very important need in our community.

Take one look at the police logs or jail records and you will see that domestic violence is a huge problem that impacts us all, either directly or indirectly.

We cannot just treat the “symptoms” through law enforcement while ignoring the “disease.”

The shelter does much work to help eliminate bad situations that could escalate into some something much worse.

Even a small donation can go along way toward allowing positive life changes or even saving lives.