CAMPAIGN NEWS
SAFE HOMES CELEBRATION - 6/4/21
Compass Center's hotline advocates are a group of dedicated volunteers who serve clients on our 24/7 domestic violence crisis line, often working through the nights and weekends. Sarah, Supreet, and Gardy discuss the impact the availability of emergency housing for survivors has had on our clients. They also talk about the challenges they faced in the past when a safe shelter within Orange County was not available.
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A CONVERSATION WITH HOTLINE ADVOCATES ABOUT SAFE HOMES
The third Safe Homes apartment, furnished and equipped with items largely donated by the community and expertly arranged by talented Compass Center volunteers.
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THIRD APARTMENT TOUR - 5/1/21
We are delighted to share with you a tour of our second Safe Homes apartment, furnished and equipped with items largely donated by the community and expertly arranged by talented Compass Center volunteers.
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SECOND APARTMENT TOUR - 3/10/21
$100,000 DONATION MATCH BY MARILYN JACOBS PREYER AND RICH PREYER
December 21, 2020
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Over the past year, Orange County friends and neighbors have committed more than $700,000 to this campaign, surpassing the initial goal with enough money to fund and staff three emergency apartments for three years. One apartment is already in use, and the others will be ready to shelter domestic violence survivors in 2021.
We became involved with the Safe Homes, New Lives project because we saw a need, a gaping hole in Orange County’s social service network that left domestic violence victims in real physical danger. The great folks at Compass Center took the lead, used proven research to develop an innovative plan for emergency housing, and are making it happen. Now, when a family under threat needs an immediate place to go, the Sheriff and city police have an answer, a Safe Home that can be the start of a New Life.
This is great, but to truly meet Orange County’s needs we should have 4, 5 or even 6 apartments available. Because we want safe places for more people experiencing life-threatening domestic violence, we are offering a challenge to all of you who are reading this: we will match your gifts up to $100,000 to help Compass Center add apartment number Four and possibly Five. Please, join us today in making this happen.
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You can make your gift now on the donation page. Thank you for your generosity, and very best wishes for the New Year.
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Your neighbors,
Marilyn Jacobs Preyer and Rich Preyer
The beautiful furnishings and decorations are provided by A Lotta Love, an all-volunteer team dedicated to remaking and maintaining shelter rooms to be welcoming, safe, comforting spaces for the people who need them. A Lotta Love is an incredible community partner of Compass Center and has refreshed three rooms at the Henderson St. location. When the team at A Lotta Love heard about the Safe Homes project, they volunteered right away to completely furnish the first apartment. We are so grateful to them and share their mission of providing safe, beautiful and dignified spaces. Please enjoy the video below from the A Lotta Love team.
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FIRST APARTMENT TOUR - 10/7/20
CAMPAIGN LAUNCH - 7/21/2020
The Safe Homes, New Lives campaign was launched on July 21, 2020 at Mary Scroggs Elementary School in Chapel Hill. Speakers at the launch included Orange County Sheriff Charles S. Blackwood, Penny Rich, Chair, Orange County Commissioners, and Vimala Rajendran, Owner, Vimala's Curryblossom Cafe and Safe Homes, New Lives campaign honorary co-chair. Mary Scroggs was the location of a tragic murder in 2012, when a 40-year-old mother was killed by her estranged husband as she picked up her children from school. The shock of this event prompted campaign co-chair Marilyn Jacobs Preyer and others to support research by the UNC School of Social Work that eventually pointed to emergency housing as one of the county’s most critical gaps in serving domestic violence victims.
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