Editor’s Note: Content warning—story contains mention of sexual and domestic violence. 

Corvallis’s Center Against Rape and Domestic Violence is hosting its Safe Families Benefit, for the first time open to the general public.

CARDV’s 16th annual SFB fundraiser will be hosted virtually from 7:30 a.m. to roughly 8:30 a.m. on Oct. 5, with a boxed breakfast for RSVPed guests catered by Forks & Corks. The boxes will be available for pick-up at Oregon State University’s Alumni Center from 5:45 a.m. to 7:15 a.m. the morning of the fundraiser. 

On the day of the event, CARDV will hyperlink the virtual benefit directly on its homepage for everyone who wants to learn more and help them reach its overall goal of raising $60,000, all of which would go directly towards assisting survivors.

“Our tagline for our event is ‘Your Gift Means Safety for Survivors,’” Kate Caldwell, CARDV’s executive director, said.

The event is scheduled to run for 45 minutes, complete with a program focused on spreading awareness and information about the work CARDV does for the community. 

“I really hope that people take away from it the importance of giving to CARDV and how that really impacts survivors,” CARDV’s Events Coordinator Janique Crenshaw said. 

Melissa Carter-Goodrum, one of CARDV’s volunteers for the event, explained the benefit will focus on “the four principles of safety, support, education and shelter.” 

According to Caldwell, it will serve as an opportunity to learn more about the inside work CARDV does, including its equity, inclusivity and social justice work, as well as its prevention education through courses such as the “Healthy Relationships” program for middle and high school youth.

“If we’re successful in any way, then we have an opportunity to do what we want to do, which is to change the societal conditions that cultivate these kinds of violence,” Caldwell said.

The event’s program is geared toward sharing education, according to CARDV Board Member Mamta Chowdhury. 

“Education is power and I hope this event will educate all of us in the community about abuse, about sexual and domestic violence; I hope this event will help raise funds to continue supporting survivors; I hope it will help us in identifying signs of abuse and in helping victims get out of abusive situations and potentially save lives,” Chowdhury said. 

The event will be hosted online on CARDV’s website due to COVID-19 safety precautions. 

“We have worked tirelessly to make sure that anything that we do is in accordance with COVID-19 restrictions and the planning of this event, which we decided to [make] virtual, was made unanimously by our committee,” Crenshaw explained. 

However, COVID-19 has not proven to be all bad for CARDV’s annual event. 

“We are in a unique position to outreach to our entire community,” Crenshaw said, eager to bring heightened awareness to Linn-Benton counties about CARDV. “We are hoping to outreach to people who have never heard of [SFB] before…or have heard of it but just never attended, and really get the word out on what CARDV actually does for survivors—and that’s legal fees, legal assistance; medical accompaniment; we provide clothing, food, housing assistance; basically any touch point where a survivor needs help—and it’s all for free.” 

The money raised at this event will go directly to client assistance, which includes helping OSU students. 

“It is so important…to really make it clear to the entire community at OSU that we are here for them, and that we are 100% confidential,” Caldwell said. “We are not mandatory reporters. We go to very great lengths to ensure someone’s safety because that may be the difference between life and death.”