Valarie Schwartz
During these economic times, when people need to make every penny count, we’re wise to pick parties this season that further the endeavors of our community nonprofits.
Among them is the Orange County Rape Crisis Center, which presents it 21st Holiday Auction beginning at 5 p.m. Nov. 9 at the Sheraton. Since its early years, the event has grown from casual snacks into a sit-down dinner with music provided by Equinox (with Chancellor Holden Thorp on keyboard). There will be a silent and live auction, and the honorary host of the evening will be Jaki Shelton Green, from whom we can hope a poem or two will flow.
The rape crisis center has been all about helping people since it was started in 1974 by a local chapter of the National Organization of Women following a string of rapes of elderly women. It has developed from primarily serving victims into an agency devoted to prevention through education and advocacy, including programs provided in the public schools, which reached 11,638 students last year.
“For someone who experiences sexual violence, our job is to be there for them,†said Christina Riordan, executive director since August 2007. “It starts with listening. The choice is made by the survivors . . . we serve as the conduit, improving police response, should they choose it, and hospital response. At the heart, we’re there for individuals who experience sexual violence, the place where they come and receive no judgment.â€
Eight full-time and six part-time workers provide a 24-hour crisis response telephone line, a Sexual Assault Response Team (SART), support groups, therapy programs, Latina/Latino services and education programs, aided by nearly 100 volunteers, serving not only in the Estes Drive office in Chapel Hill but, since 1998, in Hillsborough.
Last year 425 clients were served.
“They were individuals who experienced sexual assault directly or who were family members or friends of someone who just experienced it — or someone who 20 years ago as a child — people working through it and needing assistance,†Riordan said.
The center needs the assistance of the community to continue its healing and preventive work. To make giving more palatable, everyone involved with the agency, from staff and volunteers to board members, has scoured the county looking for donations of unique items to whet appetites and keep bids flying for such things as two seats from the Dean Smith Center — not tickets; actual Carolina blue seats that were replaced during a recent renovation and have now been signed by Dean Smith. A basketball signed by the former coach will also be auctioned, as will an Adirondack chair from Fitch Lumber; a rug from Persian Carpets; a painting by local artist Jane Filer named “Long Pathâ€; and a beautifully framed painting by Texas artist D.R. Parker, painter of Western landscapes. This haunting “Hard Times†was last appraised in 1993 for $1,250. And as with every year, Clyde Jones has contributed a sculpture, but this one is different.
“We always have a Clyde Jones but we’ve never had a giraffe,†Riordan said.
In addition to the auctions, raffle tickets are being sold that will provide someone a three-night stay in a Myrtle Beach resort and a $200 gas card.
Auction admission is $60; raffle tickets are $5. Call 968-4647 or visit www.ocrcc.org ; or send your gift to 825 N. Estes Drive, Chapel Hill, 27514.
Contact Valarie Schwartz at 923-3746 or valariekays AT mac DOT com