Have fun and break violent chains

When summer vacation ends, autumn brings in wave after wave of fundraisers for our region’s many nonprofits. There are so many that most of us can’t keep track, let alone afford the time or money to contribute to them all. With so many worthwhile options, it can be a challenge to decide where your limited charitable funds should go. We’d like to offer two suggestions that promise a great time for donors and support for two tremendous organizations geared primarily to helping women and children in distress, usually as a result of domestic violence.

First up is tonight’s benefit for the North Idaho Violence Prevention Center. The Martini Affair runs from 6 to 8 at Season’s restaurant in downtown Coeur d’Alene. Tickets are $75, and $55 of that goes directly to the nonprofit for the center’s programs. The center provides a 24-hour crisis line and much, much more to the hundreds of local victims of sexual assault and other violence each year. Counseling, court-based advocacy and shelter are the primary programs.

In the last fiscal year, the center provided shelter and food for 86 domestic violence survivors and 50 children. NIVPC’s court-based advocacy and support program helped 246 survivors maneuver the legal processes that generally come with domestic violence situations. NIVPC was formerly known as the Women’s Center, but in part because it also assists men, its board changed the name.

Not unrelated to NIVPC’s mission is Court Appointed Special Advocates, or CASA, which happens to have a major fundraiser of its own tomorrow evening. CASA’s “Uncorked” event runs from 6 to 9 at the Hagadone Event Center, and tickets are $100 each. Of that, half goes directly to CASA’s local programs.

CASA, you might have noticed, was the only Kootenai County nonprofit to receive one of six Idaho Nonprofit Excellence Awards — a stunning accomplishment when you consider that almost 200 non-religious nonprofits of more than 4,600 in the state were nominated. Each year, CASA helps upward of 500 North Idaho children who, through no fault of their own, end up in difficult court circumstances. CASA not only helps these kids navigate that difficult path, but also provides crisis prevention, treatment information and resource referrals to child abuse and neglect victims and their biological, adoptive or foster parents. Perhaps CASA’s greatest attribute is its small army of volunteers, a virtual who’s who of some of our community’s leading citizens.

Both of these organizations are positioned to turn a critical societal tide. They can break generations-long chains of violence and help victims gain strength and become happy, productive members of society. Get a good look at them through their fundraisers tonight and tomorrow night. For the NIVPC event, call (208) 664-9303 or visit nivpc.org. For the CASA event, call (208) 667-9165 or visit northidahocasa.com.