State Bank of Toulon has contributed $50,000 to Freedom House’s capital campaign for a new domestic violence shelter in Kewanee, Freedom House announced in a news release.

Freedom House is renovating the former medical arts building at 716 Elliott St., which was donated by OSF HealthCare in December 2024. The new shelter is expected to open in spring 2026

The facility will include 40 beds and feature ensuite bedrooms for families, counseling and advocacy offices, a communal kitchen and dining space, and a secure outdoor playground. The shelter will operate around the clock with trained, certified staff, the release said.

Freedom House was founded in 1983 by Princeton resident Nedda Simon and serves Henry, Stark, Bureau, Marshall and Putnam counties. In addition to its 28-bed emergency shelter in Princeton, the agency provides a 24-hour crisis hotline, medical advocacy, legal advocacy and counseling services for survivors of domestic and sexual violence.

The organization maintains outreach offices in Geneseo, Cambridge, Kewanee and Lacon.

“One in four women and one in seven men will experience severe intimate partner violence in their lifetime,” Chloe Lund, the agency’s chief operating officer, said in a news release. “The need for our services continues to grow.”

Freedom House has served tens of thousands of survivors since its founding.

For more information about Freedom House or to donate to the capital campaign, visit freedomhouseillinois.org.