A Safe Place Hosts 24th Annual Meeting
October 29 in Lincolnshire
The 24th Annual Meeting of A Safe Place/ Lake County Crisis Center took place October 29 at the Marriott Lincolnshire Resort. The meeting provides a celebratory setting in which to recognize the support and volunteer efforts of individuals, organizations, businesses and communities that assist A Safe Place in its mission to eliminate domestic violence.
The ‘Go Public’ phase of A Safe Place’s current initiative to provide a transitional living program for survivors of domestic violence was announced by Campaign Co-Chair Karen Miller, Vice President of Information Technology for Abbott Laboratories. The campaign, now nearing the $3.4 million mark of a $5 million campaign, is spreading out through demographic teams who are contacting individuals, businesses, schools and civic organizations throughout the area served by A Safe Place for their support.
Board Member and Building Committee Chairman Byron Prais announced that, following the ceremonial groundbreaking on 11+ wooded acres in Zion in September, groundwork would continue on the 20-unit apartment building in November. Completion of the project is expected early in 2005.
Keynote speaker MonaLou Callery, Executive Director of the National Advocacy and Training Network in Phoenix, related her own experience of domestic violence and her struggle to escape and rebuild a life of safety for herself and four children. Her advocacy in working with service and justice systems in three states provided suggestions for communities to practice effective collaborations in addressing the issues of domestic violence.
A Safe Place reported providing nearly 14,000 nights of shelter and assisting more than 3,300 Lake, McHenry and northern Cook County residents with comprehensive services including counseling, children’s counseling, abuser treatment services, and court advocacy in its 2003 fiscal year. Calls to the agency’s 24-hour HELP LINE increased 53% to 6,524 calls in this period.
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