This September you have two opportunities to support the National Children’s Advocacy Center at two terrific events, and they both involve a very beautiful lady, the current Miss America! What events am I speaking of? The September Celebration for the Kids and Blush and Brunch with Miss America.
September Celebration for the Kids
Is there anything better than doing good while having a good time? On September 20th, the National Children’s Advocacy Center (NCAC) in Huntsville is hosting its 12th annual September Celebration: “An Evening of Caring and Commitment” at the Von Braun Center North Hall. This year, the NCAC is honored to have the lovely Miss America 2013, Mallory Hagan, as its special guest.
This fun and exciting evening will feature a complimentary cocktail hour, dinner stations, live and silent auctions, and special musical performances by The Local Saints. Auction items of note include trips to Napa Valley, a Tennessee River yacht cruise, and an elaborate hand-crafted dollhouse. Tickets are $100 per person or $1000 for a table of 8.
Blush and Brunch with Miss America
Blush and Brunch with Miss America will be held the following morning on Saturday the 21st at 10 am at Huntsville High School. Enjoy a pancake breakfast, courtesy of the Kiwanis Club of Huntsville, crafts and more.
Children will have the opportunity to receive a complementary “Glitz and Glam” makeover from Spoiled Rockin’ Kidz and then walk the runway with tips from Mallory and take a picture with her. Tickets are $25 per child and $10 per adult.
The Cause: The National Children’s Advocacy Center
The National Children’s Advocacy Center is a non-profit organization that exists to model, promote, and deliver excellence in child abuse response and prevention through service, education, and leadership. Each year, the NCAC directly serves more than 700 local children in the Huntsville area who have been victims of sexual, physical, and/or emotional abuse and neglect. The NCAC provides free forensic interviews, medical exams, and therapy to those children as well as counselling and support for their non-offending caregivers.
Since its inception in 1985, the NCAC has aided in the establishment of more than 800
CACs throughout the United States and abroad, and has trained and/or provided technical assistance to more than 70,000 child abuse response professionals from the United States and 24 foreign countries.
Just last year, the NCAC clinical department served 749 local children from nearly every school system in Madison County who were victims of abuse. Through its prevention programs, such as the classroom student education program, SCAN (Stop Child Abuse and Neglect) it reached more than 9000 local children and their families.
NCAC History
In 1985, former Congressman Bud Cramer (then District Attorney of Madison County, Alabama) founded the NCAC, the first Child Advocacy Center in the world. In doing so, he developed the Child Advocacy Center (CAC) model for serving victims of child abuse. Prior to the development of this model, children who reported child abuse crimes were required to tell their story of abuse to several different individuals in various organizations.
This uncoordinated and, sometimes, redundant approach often caused the children further trauma. Because of this, many families would abandon the process altogether – leaving the child’s needs unmet and the perpetrator free to potentially harm more children. The CAC model was created to form a more effective, efficient, and therapeutic response system by bringing together law enforcement, criminal justice, child protective service, and medical and mental health workers onto one coordinated team.
Want to Learn More?
- Find the National Children’s Advocacy Center on Facebook
- Visit the National Children’s Advocacy Center website
- Read about past National Children’s Advocacy Center events
Event Information: September Celebration
Date: Friday, September 20th
Time: 5:30-8:30pm
Location: Von Braun Center, North Hall
Cost: $100 per person or $1000 for a table of 8
Tickets: Available online through the NCAC website
Event Information: Blush and Blush with Miss America
Date: Saturday, September 21st
Time: 10am-1pm
Location: Huntsville High School
Cost: $25 per child/ $10 per adult
Tickets: Available online through the NCAC Website
About the Author
Nikki Dill is the Community Development Coordinator for the National Children’s Advocacy Center in Huntsville, AL. She received her B.A. in Communication from the University of Colorado at Boulder and her J.D. from the University of Alabama School of Law. After several years of part-time law practice and teaching University-level business law, she decided to leave the legal world and pursue her passion of helping others through non-profit work that serves victims of child abuse and neglect. She currently resides in Huntsville, Alabama with her husband, Drew, and two children.
Guest blogger for We Are Huntsville. Are you interested in writing a post for our site? Email katelyn@wearehuntsville.com.
