Raising money for PREVENTION is tough.
There I said it.
As a society, we do a really good job responding to a crisis. When there is someone in an immediate need, we always step up. It’s something I will always admire about our community.
But prevention…that’s tricky. You can’t see it. People don’t think there’s an “immediate need.”
I’ve been planning a Dancing With the Stars event to raise money for Family & Children’s Council. It’s something different…something I have seen in many other cities across the country that is unique and fun.
“Tickets are $50.”
“That’s a little steep…what do we get for that.”
That was a quick exchange I had recently. And I get it. $50 is a lot…money is tight…you may have to get a babysitter…will there be free food or drink? All things that would pop into my head too.
We need that $50. Every child in our community needs that $50. This is why.
Recently, a 10-year-old girl was taking part of our Take Charge of Your Body program in her school in Black Hawk County. (It’s our sexual abuse prevention program). In the middle of the presentation, she started to cry. Glenda, our Sexual Abuse Prevention Coordinator, pulled the young girl out of the classroom to talk with her. It was disclosed that she was being sexually abused by her father since she was three-years-old. In fact, her father was forcing her to watch pornography. He told her “do you see that man and girl? That’s what fathers and daughters do.” She thought this was NORMAL because that is what she was taught. Our TCOYB program taught this girl about what is appropriate behavior and what is not appropriate. And because of our programming, that young girl is now in a happy, healthy and SAFE environment.
The money that we get into FCC to support our programming is what helped to empower this young girl to use her voice and get into a safe place. That’s what we do.
So yes, people may get annoyed by my endless posts trying to sell tickets to “another event.” But it’s never about THE EVENT. It’s about what the event allows us to do….keep kids safe.
I can assure you – that $50 is not going to pay for the venue. It’s not going to pay for the food we’re going to give you. It’s not going to pay for the drinks we’re going to have. It’s not paying for our local stars’ time. It’s not going to pay for my salary. It’s not going to pay for our office rent.
That $50 is going to make sure we do everything we can to help a child safe.
Every child.
From every neighborhood…from every side of town….from every family.
$50.
That breaks down to $0.96 a week for a year.
How much would you pay to keep your own child safe?