Sexual Assault Centre of Edmonton (SACE)
Posted by Norm Johnson on Mar 13, 2017
Thursday, May 25
.jpg)
On Thursday, May 25th, SACE will be hosting its annual fundraising and awareness gala at the Shaw Conference Centre with an anticipated 350-400 guests in attendance. The evening will include musical entertainment, a plated dinner, live painting, as well as silent and live auctions. This year’s event is We Believe: The Art of Healing. Art therapy is one of the many therapeutic trauma modalities utilized by the 14 trauma therapists at SACE.
This year, we are proud to announce that Jillian Marino, a survivor of a horrific act of sexual violence, will be our guest speaker. Jillian, now the Principal at JD Bracco Junior High School, has shared her story as a keynote speaker with Victim's Services volunteers, conferences for Crown Prosecutors, Violence against Women events, and for the Edmonton Police Service over the years. Her very impactful and empowering presentation will be one of hope, strength, and victory in the healing journey after trauma.
As difficult as it is to understand, statistics consistently indicate that, in Canada, 1 in 3 women and at least 1 in 6 men will experience sexual violence before the age of 18. Since 1975, SACE has been providing professional, essential services and support to survivors of all genders over the age of three. These services include individual and group counselling, extensive age and audience-specific public education programs, diversity outreach and support to marginalized communities, court support, as well as a 24-Hour Sexual Assault Support and Information Line. We are the only agency in the City of Edmonton to provide this range of services to the community at no fee. All proceeds from We Believe will be directed towards services and support for our clients and our community.
Whether we realize it or not, we all know someone who has been affected by this crime. Please help us support the many survivors in our community on their healing journey by making a contribution to our event through a donation of goods or services for the silent or live auctions.
For more information on the gala or how to support the event, please contact either Morgan Bissegger (morganb@sace.ab.ca) or Shristi Bali (shristib@sace.ab.ca).
Thank you very much for taking the time to read this letter and to consider our request. Any support you can provide would be greatly appreciated and will be publicly acknowledged in the event program, through our social media, and on our website. If you would like more information on SACE and the many services that we provide, or for resources on sexual violence, please do not hesitate to contact me, or any member of the SACE team, at any time.