WFHB Bloomington Community Radio
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The longtime director of Middle Way House, Toby Strout, has died at the age of 71. Strout led the organization for almost three decades before retiring last year. Middle Way House has a mission to end violence, both structural and interpersonal, in the lives of women and children. Strout oversaw major changes at the organization. During her tenure, Middle Way added a rape crisis center, legal advocacy and childcare, along with other programs. The current executive director at Middle Way House, Debra Morrow, reflected today on Strout’s influence in the local community.
“She transformed lives,” Morrow said. “I think that is what we can most credit her for. During her time as executive director, over 60,000 individuals were impacted by the work that she did. And so when you think about our community and the surrounding areas that we serve, that’s a huge impact on the community. Today, that’s a huge loss for the community, as well as our organization.”
During her time at Middle Way House, Strout coordinated the development of The Rise, which is a transitional housing facility providing housing to families headed by women who have experienced life-threatening violence. The Rise opened in 1998. In 2010, under her leadership, Middle Way House opened the New Wings domestic violence shelter in the historic Coca-Cola Bottling Co. plant on South Washington Street. During a 2013 interview on WFHB’s Interchange, Strout explained what it meant for her organization to target structural violence in the lives of women.
“We work hard within our community to change institutions, and to change attitudes and expectations so that women are treated fairly and are more likely to be believed and treated with respect when they report to law enforcement, when they find themselves in a courtroom,” Strout said. “And then, beyond that, where do they live that they can afford and that will be safe for them? Where do they work? And so we’re trying to work on all those fronts so that we can provide meaningful alternatives to living with violence.”
Middle Way House has established what is called the Toby Strout VOICES fund, a place for people to donate in honor of Strout with all funds going directly to programs and outreach.
