2018 Front Line Service Providers’ Awards

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The CASASC team attended the 2018 Front Line Service Providers’ Awards on Nov. 7 at the Radisson Hotel in Red Deer.

The 14th annual awards ceremony, hosted by the Domestic and Relationship Violence Committee (DRVIC), is a time for front line service providers to come together to recognize each other and the meaningful work being done within these communities.

CASASC Volunteer/SART Coordinator Michele Kercher was nominated for a Front Line Service Providers’ Award for her dedicated work in the community, working on the front line to assist those in crisis.

CASASC Crisis Support Worker Kassandra Crayston was nominated for a Front Line Service Providers’ Award for being “always ready to respond, Kassandra ensures clients and those in crisis feel heard, believed and supported.”

CASASC would like to congratulate all of the nominees and recipients at this year’s award ceremony.

CASASC attends Alberta Legislature

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CASASC received an important recognition on Wednesday. CASASC team members were invited as special guests to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta by Red Deer-North MLA Kim Schreiner on Nov. 7.

The team, including staff, board members and volunteers, were guests of the MLA for the afternoon session. Schreiner said a greeting in front of the House and also made a member’s statement about CASASC’s work in the community following question period.

Schreiner wore an #iRespect t-shirt in the House under her blazer, upon approval of the Speaker of the House.

This recognition was a true honour and the team is grateful to receive a provincial nod to the organization’s work in the region.

The Ghomeshi Effect to hit the stage in Red Deer

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With sexual violence dominating the news cycle and social media feeds, Ottawa’s award-winning documentary dance-theatre performance The Ghomeshi Effect offers a nuanced exploration of how the legal system handles sexual assault cases in Canada.

Following a limited run at the University of Ottawa’s LabO Theatre from October 23 to 27, the play will tour universities and communities in Ontario and Alberta, including London, Sudbury, North Bay, Cochrane and Area, Calgary, Medicine Hat, Red Deer, Edmonton and Fort McMurray. All performances are followed by a talkback with expert panellists from each community.

The Ghomeshi Effect will be presented in Red Deer by the Central Alberta Sexual Assault Support Centre (CASASC) on Friday, November 9 at the Red Deer Memorial Centre. The performance begins at 7:30 p.m. and tickets are $5 per person.

In the aftermath of #MeToo and #TimesUp, The Ghomeshi Effect shares real-life stories of survivors alongside interviews with lawyers, academics, and support workers, and offers new perspectives and opportunities for open discussion through words and movement.

“We need to talk about this,” said Jessica Ruano, writer and director of The Ghomeshi Effect. “We need to find new ways of talking about it. We need to have conversations that move beyond provocative news articles and Facebook battles that are eliciting strong reactions, yet further dividing us.”

CASASC Executive Director Patricia Arango says the not-for-profit is thrilled to bring the impactful production to the central Alberta region.

“Through The Ghomeshi Effect, we can have a conversation on the topic of sexual violence and invite people to work together to prevent sexual violence,” said Arango. “We as a society need to recover our freedom and no longer live in fear. It begins first as a conversation, working towards preventing sexual violence in our community.”

The Ghomeshi Effect tackles sexual violence in Canada, particularly how it is handled in the legal system, through an edited series of documented interviews, and uses dance to inform and interrogate the language used in the discussion of sexual violence.

Written and directed by Jessica Ruano (2017 Femmy Award Winner) and choreographed by Amelia Griffin, this production features performers Nayeli Abrego, Leah Archambault, Elizabeth Emond-Stevenson, Gabrielle Lalonde, Joy Mwandemange, Emmanuel Simon, and Michael Swatton, as well as the work of lighting designer Benoît Brunet-Poirier and sound designer Martin Dawagne.

The Ghomeshi Effect was originally presented as part of The Gladstone’s 2016-17 Season and played at the Shenkman Arts Centre. Since then, members of the team have presented at the LEAF Gala in Toronto, International Women’s Day Ottawa, and Take Back the Night – Lanark County.

The Ghomeshi Effect acknowledges funding support from the Ontario Arts Council and the Alberta Status of Women.

Tickets are available through The Black Knight Ticket Centre (in person, by phone 403-343-6666 or online at https://tickets.blackknightinn.ca) or at the CASASC main office. High school students receive complimentary entrance at the door with a valid high school id.

For more information visit: https://theghomeshieffect.com/

CASASC wins Not-for-profit of the Year Award

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The Central Alberta Sexual Assault Support Centre (CASASC) was awarded with the Not-for-profit of the Year Award at the 2018 Red Deer & District Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year Awards on Oct. 17.

The annual award ceremony was held at the Red Deer College Arts Centre. Five awards were given out during the ceremony including the Young Entrepreneurs Award among Business of the Year Awards in various employee size categories.

CASASC was one of three finalists in the not-for-profit category, including the Central Alberta Pregnancy Care Centre and the Lending Cupboard Society of Alberta.

The evening featured a cocktail and canape hour, opening messages from the Chamber CEO, MLAs, mayors and videos on each finalist.

2018 #IBelieveYou Campaign launches

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With the powerful message of “I Believe You” the annual provincial campaign was launched in Central Alberta on Oct 3.

Red Deer College (RDC) student ambassadors and Central Alberta Sexual Assault Support Centre (CASASC) staff launched the campaign at the RDC main campus. Students were invited to sign the graffiti wall and were provided with information about the sexual violence survivor support campaign as well as the services provided at CASASC.

#IBelieveYou is a partnership between AASAS and the Government of Alberta Ministry of Community and Social Services. It has gained wide support from twenty-eight post-secondary campuses, military, student, business, and community leaders, media, politicians, and every day Albertans. This year, the campaign is focusing on “I Believe you, now what?,” dealing with the response after a survivor tells you they were sexually assaulted.

The RDC #IBelieveYou ambassadors will be hosting a larger #IBelieveYou event in November as well as other #IBelieveYou events throughout the central Alberta region.

The campaign has run each fall since 2015. The goal is to encourage Albertans to add their voice to the chorus of support for sexual assault survivors so that the message can be even more widely understood and embraced – and so that more survivors will feel safe to tell someone. Together, we can make an even bigger impact on the lives of survivors, and make our communities healthier and safer for everyone.

CASASC receives donation from Central Alberta Yogathon

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A big thanks to the Central Alberta Yogathon (CAY) committee for their generous donation to the Central Alberta Sexual Assault Support Centre (CASASC). CASASC accepted the $5,000 donation from CAY representatives on October 1. The donation of the proceeds from this year’s Yogathon will be used towards client support services.

From left to right: CASASC Administrative Assistant Sarah Maetche, CASASC Executive Director Patricia Arango, CAY organizer Erin Payne and CAY committee member Madelyn Commins.

Orange Shirt Day

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CASASC staff showed their #iRespect for Orange Shirt Day on September 28. Recognition was shown for Phyllis’s story, keeping the discussion open on the impacts of residential schools in Canada.

Read more about the background of Orange Shirt Day here: http://www.orangeshirtday.org/

Vote for our idea – 2018 AVIVA Community Fund

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As a supporter of ending sexual violence, we at the Central Alberta Sexual Assault Support Centre are please to share with you that the 24 Hour Sexual Assault Text and Webchat Crisis Line is one of the 2018 AVIVA Community Fund ideas eligible for voting.

As we continue to grow, we are reaching out to select collaborators, like yourself, to help spread the word among your networks to let people know that this line is not only available provincially, but it is also part of this amazing campaign with the possibility to win $10,000 in program funding.

Our idea is nominated under the “small ideas” category, which means it is in competition with other ideas across Canada to earn the most votes possible between Sept. 25th to Oct. 4th.

To vote for us, please go to this link https://www.avivacommunityfund.org/voting/project/view/18-205 and register for the AVIVA Community Fund. Once you have registered, you will be given 10 votes you can use at any time during the voting period to vote for your favourite idea.

You can spread your votes around or use them all to support one project. Cast all 10 votes at once, or keep coming back to cast your votes.

We would appreciate your support as we spread the word – so that individuals within your network know that assistance is just a text or webchat away. You can learn more about this campaign through our digital toolkit. Please email us for more information or if you have any questions about the tools.

Thank you for helping us let people know about the 24 Hour Sexual Assault Text and Webchat Crisis Line. Please vote for us and share this information.

Paving our future

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Towards paving a future in the community, CASASC staff attended the Legacy Walkway Reveal Party on Aug. 24.

The legacy walkway, filled of paving stones of alumni and community members, leads up to the Gary W. Harris Canada Games Centre on the Red Deer College (RDC) campus.

The reveal party was held to recognize the contributions of the community to the new athletic facility.

The Paving Our Future campaign, the campaign spearheading the initiative, provided an opportunity for people to show their college and community pride by making a charitable donation in support of the new facility. Those who made a donation had their family, business or personal name engraved onto a paving stone, which was then used to create the legacy walkway to the new centre.

Bre Fitzpatrick, RDC’s Alumni Development Coordinator, shared how this support was an essential element for the campaign, which is the single largest fundraising initiative that the RDC Alumni Association has embarked upon.

“Red Deer College is very fortunate to have supportive groups of people who maintain a strong connect to our institution, whether these may be RDC alumni, community members or partners,” she said in a press release. “These people really are the mortar between the bricks of what we are today and what we will be in the future. Their support of Paving Our Future will have a tremendous impact on the college, and their names will be engraved in the legacy walkway of the new Gary W. Harris Canada Games Centre.”

The Gary W. Harris Canada Games Centre will open its doors in the fall of 2018. The venue will also host five events during the 2019 Canada Winter Games. The centre has an estimated cost of $88 million, funded through a combination of donations, partnerships and government funding.

 

 

Hit the mat at the Central Alberta Yogathon

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On Saturday, Aug. 18 roll out your mat for a great cause. Join us in downtown Red Deer for the 2018 Nexus Energy Technologies Central Alberta Yogathon.

The empowering fundraiser kicks off at 10 a.m. and runs to 2 p.m. at City Hall Park.

The event features four hours of yoga, taught in a variety of styles and led by certified central Alberta-based teachers, a raffle, refreshments and prizes.

This year the recipient of the funds raised is the Central Alberta Sexual Assault Support Centre (CASASC), which educates, supports and empowers individuals, families and communities regarding all aspects of sexual violence. CASASC has been in service for over 30 years in the central Alberta region, covering a service area spanning south from Wetaskiwin to Carstairs and west from Rocky Mountain House to Hanna.

The purpose of this event is to bring awareness surrounding not only sexual violence, but mental health support initiatives through the healing power of yoga.

The Yogathon is suitable for all ages and abilities.

This is the fourth year for the Central Alberta Yogathon. Last year’s event included over 40 participants and raised $9,000 for the Smiles Thru Lindsey Foundation, a local mental health initiative.

Registration is $40 per person, with the fee waived for the participant who raises over $200 in pledges. Participants are encouraged to register as a team or individual. Registration is available on-line at https://www.canadahelps.org/en/charities/central-alberta-sexual-assault-centre/p2p/centralalbertayogathon/ or through a traditional paper pledge form.

Update: The Central Alberta Yogathon was postponed on August 18 due to air quality concerns. The yogathon has been rescheduled for Saturday, September 15.