National Volunteer Week

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National Volunteer Week 2019 was celebrated from April 7 to April 13.

The Central Alberta Sexual Assault Support Centre has a team of 70 plus volunteers who lift up those in our community 24 hours a day.

In honour of National Volunteer Week 2019, we asked our volunteers why they give their time. On our social media channels we featured a series that showcased their responses – their volunteer factor, why they volunteer.

“Everyone deserves to be heard and needs to be given a chance to be heard. Silently listening can be all someone needs to bring some rest to a restless heart.”

 

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.

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.

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.

 

 

Respect Day celebration draws crowd to City Hall Park

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The more individuals respect one another, the less harm they will do to each other. This could lead to the elimination of violence.

The Central Alberta Sexual Assault Support Centre (CASASC) continued its’ mission to eliminate sexual violence by hosting a free community event in honour of respect at City Hall Park.

On May 25th CASASC celebrated Respect Day in Red Deer. This was a community celebration where the focus was placed on creating a culture of respect in our day-to-day lives in Central Alberta. It featured Latin flavoured music by Grupo Konga, dancing by the Red Deer Aboriginal Dance Troupe, information booths and a by-donation barbeque.

Local dignitaries City of Red Deer Deputy Mayor Ken Johnston, MLA Barb Miller, MLA Kim Schreiner and MP Earl Dreeshen brought greetings to the crowd gathered.

Respect Day was an awareness event connected to CASASC’s current proactive campaign titled #iRespect. The goal of #iRespect is to encourage everyone to conduct their lives and treat one another with respect. In this, sexual violence, and violence in general, will be eliminated. This campaign is focused on awareness and creating positive changes, dispelling the negative connotations of “rape culture.”

“The idea is that the promotion and encouragement of respect is a preventative measure against sexual violence,” said CASASC Executive Director Patricia Arango. “The more respect people have for one another the less harm they will cause.”

CASASC AGM 2018

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Board members, staff and students attended the CASASC AGM for 2017 on May 15, 2018 at Tiffany’s Steakhouse and Lounge.

Respect Day – Join us on May 25th

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You are not going to want to miss this!
Join us on Friday, May 25 for Respect Day. CASASC will be celebrating this annual day in City Hall in Red Deer. This is a free event that will feature music, dancing, information booths and a by donation barbeque
Everyone is welcome!
Wear your MADE TO RESPECT t-shirt
Together we can create a culture of #Respect