History

The Counseling Connection has been serving people in the Greater Kanawha Valley since 1929, starting out in the basement of St. John’s Episcopal Church. The agency was then staffed by volunteers who provided emergency assistance and later “friendly visiting” to people who needed temporary help with their financial problems or someone to talk with because of loneliness, loss of family members or other reasons. As our whole social structure became more complex, the agency had to hire staff trained in counseling to deal with the multiple problems individuals, couples and families faced. In 1979, at the request of the local United Way Board of Directors, The Counseling Connection merged with the Sexual Assault Information Center. The merger brought one staff person, funded by the VISTA (Volunteers In Service To America.) The Counseling Connection Board made a commitment to the United Way Board and to the community to expand treatment services from rape victims to include other sexual abuse issues, incest and non-familial sexual assault / abuse and Domestic Violence.

The Counseling Connection has a strong history of providing quality services to this community – our commitment to quality service is the cornerstone of our organization.