[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 6]
[Senate]
[Pages 8779-8780]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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                      TRIBUTE TO GRACE S. MATTERN

 Ms. AYOTTE. Mr. President, today I recognize and congratulate 
Grace S. Mattern for her 30 years of service on behalf of the New 
Hampshire Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence.
  Since its inception, the coalition has become a leader in the 
struggle for victims', women's, and children's rights. Over the past 
quarter century, Grace has shaped the way domestic violence and sexual 
assault is understood and responded to in New Hampshire. Under Grace's 
leadership, the coalition has developed a nationally recognized model 
for protocols, state law, and health care initiatives. On the local 
level, there has been no victim-centered legislation in which Grace has 
not played a major part.
  One of Grace's strongest attributes is her ability to work with 
people and facilitate meetings in a productive way. She has worked 
tirelessly to encourage everyone to work together to strengthen efforts 
to end domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking. Her work 
includes participation in many boards and commissions both nationally 
and locally.
  Grace has been involved in various projects that involve 
groundbreaking work not only for New Hampshire but also for the 
country. Because of her leadership in 1997, the coalition, in 
conjunction with the State, was selected by the Family Violence 
Prevention Fund to establish a partnership to improve the health care 
system's response to domestic violence, called the National Health 
Initiative. New Hampshire was one of only 10 States in the Nation to 
participate in this program and the only State in New England. To this 
day, Grace continues to work with the medical community to educate 
physicians on the impact of trauma from domestic and sexual violence.
  In 1999, the coalition successfully applied to be one of six sites in 
the country selected for what is known as the Greenbook Project. 
Grafton County was selected and funded as a national demonstration site 
for improving collaboration between domestic violence organizations, 
courts, and child protective services in families where there is a co-
occurrence of domestic violence, child abuse, and neglect. New 
Hampshire was the only site selected in the eastern United States. This 
project has led to more collaborative efforts not only in Grafton 
County but across New Hampshire.
  Grace was highly involved in the creation of one of the first 
AmeriCorps programs in the State. Named the AmeriCorps Victim 
Assistance Program, it was a ``first in the Nation'' model that she 
started with representatives from the New Hampshire Department of 
Justice and the State's court system, and is now in its 11th year. The 
program recruits and trains members to assist victims of domestic 
violence, sexual violence, and stalking at crisis centers, police 
departments, prosecutors' offices, the New Hampshire Department of 
Justice, and on college and university campuses throughout the State.
  As Grace retires, I commend her efforts and congratulate her for all 
of the

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accomplishments of the New Hampshire Coalition Against Domestic and 
Sexual Violence. I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing her 30 
years of service on behalf of the people of New Hampshire.

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