Between Friends
Between Friends is a Chicago-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit, founded in 1986, that provides free domestic violence survivor services, court advocacy, counseling, and prevention education across Chicagoland, supported by donations, federal VOCA grants, and ICDVP professional training fees.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1995
- HeadquartersChicago, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Between Friends does
Between Friends is a Chicago-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1986 that operates a comprehensive domestic violence prevention and survivor support platform across the Chicagoland region. Its core service portfolio is organized into two functional pillars: survivor support, comprising a 24/7 crisis hotline (1-800-603-4357), adult/teen/child/family/group counseling with childcare, court advocacy inside two Cook County courthouses, free legal clinics via Zoom, Orders of Protection assistance, and safety planning; and prevention/education, comprising the REACH teen dating violence prevention program, YCARE peer ally program, and a community education and training practice delivered in hospitals, schools, and salons. The organization reaches more than 7,000 lives annually, delivers services in English, Spanish, and Portuguese, and operates with 11-50 employees.
The business model is a hybrid donation-and-grant nonprofit with a small earned-revenue stream. Survivor services are provided free of charge. The organization relies on individual donations via its Give donation portal, corporate sponsorships (e.g., You Got Construction as premier sponsor for Light Up the Lakefront), federal VOCA grants (currently subject to 44% historical cuts with potential additional 43% reduction), and professional training fees ($255 per individual / $200 per person for organizational cohorts for the ICDVP-required 40-hour DV training). An additional vertical was added in April 2025 with Illinois Salon Professionals CE Training for cosmetology license renewal. Technology infrastructure is conventional: a WordPress-based website, standard telephony/text crisis response, and Zoom for remote legal clinics and training.
Between Friends operates under a horizontal segmentation model targeting four personas: domestic violence survivors (primary), children of survivors, teenagers and adolescents at risk of teen dating violence, and community members/professionals seeking training and education. Distribution is entirely direct: hotline, on-site counseling, school-based programs, courthouse-embedded court advocacy, and community education settings. Strategic positioning rests on a 38-year community trust base, ICDVP-approved training and supervision site status, and an integrated legal/clinical/educational referral network with Life Span Legal Aid, Legal Aid Chicago, Ascend Justice, and Apna Ghar. The organization's primary near-term strategic risk is federal funding contraction, which it is partially offsetting through programmatic diversification into regulated professional training verticals and Associate Board-led community fundraising events.
Between Friends firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Between Friends
- Legal name
- Between Friends
- Website
- https://betweenfriendschicago.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1995
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Between Friends is a Chicago-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit, founded in 1986, that provides free domestic violence survivor services, court advocacy, counseling, and prevention education across Chicagoland, supported by donations, federal VOCA grants, and ICDVP professional training fees.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Between Friends industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Domestic Violence Support Services
- NAICS
- Outpatient Mental Health and Substance Abuse Centers (621420), Child and Youth Services (62411)
- SIC
- Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Health Services (8000)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Peer Support, Recovery Coaching & Sober Living Services (HLAFACAN)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- School Counseling Services (Individual & Group) (EDAKAMAB)
Keywords
Where Between Friends is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Chicago
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
Between Friends business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- Individual Donations: Tax-deductible donations from individual supporters via website donation portal (Give platform), supporting all domestic violence services including crisis hotline, counseling, and prevention programs.
- Corporate Giving & Sponsorships: Corporate sponsors support events like Light Up the Lakefront. You Got Construction was premiere sponsor for 2024 event.
- Professional Training Fees: 40-hour domestic violence training costs $255 for single participant, $200 per person for organizations sending multiple participants. Fulfills Illinois Domestic Violence Act training requirement for ICDVP certification.
- Government Grants: Federal VOCA (Victims of Crime Act) funding supports survivor services, though facing 44% reduction. Additional government funding streams support operations.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | 40-Hour Domestic Violence Training - $255/single or $200/person for organizations |
| Other | Other | Free Services for Survivors |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels6 records
Marketing channels6 records
Between Friends product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Between Friends is a Chicago-based nonprofit that delivers free, confidential crisis intervention, individual counseling, and court advocacy services to survivors of domestic violence, along with prevention education programs for youth and fee-based professional training for service providers. All direct survivor services are provided at no cost, while structured training programs are offered to organizations and individuals at a published fee.
Product overview
Between Friends is a Chicago-based nonprofit organization dedicated to preventing domestic violence and ending the cycle of abuse. The organization offers a comprehensive suite of free services organized into survivor support (24-hour crisis hotline, adult/teen/child/family/group counseling, court advocacy, legal clinics, Orders of Protection assistance, safety planning) and prevention/education programs (REACH teen dating violence prevention, YCARE youth education, and community education & training including 40-hour professional DV training). Key programs include A Night Out for survivor community building and specialized services like the Illinois Salon Professionals CE Training. The organization is not a technology company but a direct service nonprofit.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- 24-Hour Crisis Helpline
Quantifiable outcome
- Over 7,000 lives touched by the organization in a single year
Companies that use Between Friends
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Between Friends technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Between Friends partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Circuit Court of Cook CountycoreBetween Friends provides court advocacy services at the Third Municipal District Courthouse in Rolling Meadows and the First Municipal District Domestic Violence Courthouse in downtown Chicago, supporting survivors navigating the justice system.
- Partner AgenciesminorClients referred by partner agencies including police departments, schools, therapists, and resource officers across Chicagoland.
- Life Span Legal AidminorReferral resource for survivors needing additional legal services beyond Between Friends' court advocacy; intakes on Tuesdays and Thursdays, 9:30am-12:00pm at (312) 408-1210.
- Legal Aid ChicagominorReferral resource for free legal services; phone intakes Monday to Friday, 8:00am-10:00am at (847) 475-3703 (northern suburbs) and (312) 341-1070 (Chicago).
- Ascend JusticeminorImmigration legal services partner for survivors needing VAWA immigration relief or U-Visa assistance; contact (312) 971-5932.
- Apna GharminorImmigration support partner for DV-related immigration relief referrals; contact (773) 883-4663.
- You Got ConstructioncorePremier sponsor for 2024 Light Up the Lakefront event, providing generous financial support and lending van and personnel for transporting event supplies.
- NorthShore University Health SystemscoreHonored as Friends of the Year 2023 alongside Swedish Hospital and individual supporters for organizational contributions.
- Swedish HospitalcoreHonored as Friends of the Year 2023 alongside NorthShore University Health Systems for organizational contributions.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Between Friends competitors and assessment
Company assessmentRegional players
- The Network: Advocating Against Domestic Violence: Illinois state-wide coalition of DV service providers offering training, technical assistance, and policy advocacy. Regional peer working with member agencies including Between Friends; competes for state-level training and policy funding.
Direct peers
- Apna Ghar: Chicago nonprofit providing domestic violence and human trafficking services, including emergency shelter, counseling, and immigration legal support. Already a referral partner of Between Friends; direct peer in both geography and service mix.
- Resilience (formerly Chicago Metro Battered Women): Chicago-based nonprofit providing domestic violence crisis intervention, counseling, court advocacy, and prevention services. Operates in the same Chicagoland geography with overlapping service lines, directly competing for survivors, donors, and government grants.
- KAN-WIN: Chicago-based DV and sexual assault agency serving Asian American communities with crisis intervention, counseling, court advocacy, and prevention education. Comparable service model and Chicagoland geography; competes for similar donor and grant funding.
- A Safe Place: Lake County, Illinois domestic violence agency offering crisis hotline, emergency shelter, counseling, and court advocacy. Direct peer with overlapping service model and overlapping Chicagoland-area catchment, competing for similar grant and donor dollars.
- WINGS (Women in Need Growing Strong): Metropolitan Chicago-area nonprofit providing shelter, counseling, advocacy, and prevention education for domestic violence survivors. Operating in a similar geography with comparable service mix and revenue model (donations + grants).
- Ascend Justice: Chicago-based legal services nonprofit providing immigration legal aid and family law representation for DV survivors. Existing referral partner of Between Friends; comparable Chicagoland focus with overlapping survivor client base.
Broad incumbents
- Safe Horizon: New York City-based large DV and victims services nonprofit offering hotline, shelters, counseling, and court advocacy. Comparable service lines; broader incumbent at substantially larger scale, useful as a benchmark for mature DV nonprofit operating models.
- National Domestic Violence Hotline: National 24/7 crisis hotline and resource hub for DV survivors. A broader incumbent operating the federal communications backbone (loveisrespect) that Between Friends' local hotline complements; competes for national corporate and federal funding.
- YWCA Metropolitan Chicago: Large regional YWCA chapter operating DV shelters, sexual violence services, and economic empowerment programs across Chicagoland. A broader incumbent with overlapping DV services but also a much wider program portfolio and donor base.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Between Friends social profiles
Digital presenceBetween Friends financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Between Friends leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Between Friends funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Between Friends M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Between Friends
What does Between Friends do?
Between Friends is a Chicago-based nonprofit that delivers free, confidential crisis intervention, individual counseling, and court advocacy services to survivors of domestic violence, along with prevention education programs for youth and fee-based professional training for service providers. All direct survivor services are provided at no cost, while structured training programs are offered to organizations and individuals at a published fee.
Is Between Friends a public or private company?
Between Friends is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Between Friends founded?
Between Friends was founded in 1995. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Between Friends based?
Between Friends is headquartered in Chicago, United States, in the North America region.
How does Between Friends make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Individual Donations are the primary driver. The others are corporate Giving & Sponsorships, professional Training Fees and government Grants.
Who are Between Friends's main competitors?
The Network: Advocating Against Domestic Violence is listed as a regional player. Direct peers are Apna Ghar, Resilience (formerly Chicago Metro Battered Women), KAN-WIN, A Safe Place, WINGS (Women in Need Growing Strong) and Ascend Justice. Broad incumbents are Safe Horizon, National Domestic Violence Hotline and YWCA Metropolitan Chicago.
Does Between Friends have an API?
No public API is recorded for Between Friends.
What industry is Between Friends in?
Between Friends's product category is Domestic Violence Support Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HLAFACAN, Peer Support, Recovery Coaching & Sober Living Services, with a secondary code of EDAKAMAB, School Counseling Services (Individual & Group). Its NAICS code is 621420 and its SIC code is 8300.