Redwood Times
Women’s Crisis Shelter in Southern Humboldt (WISH) is currently struggling to meet expenses between grants, director Mary Balletta told participants in Southern Humboldt Working Together’s monthly meeting last Wednesday, March 6.
WISH has recently applied for a new Emergency Solutions Grant from the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and expects to hear the results sometime this spring, Balletta said.
A previous grant was used up earlier this year, and as typically happens each year, part of the new grant will be needed to catch up on expenses incurred in the interim.
Donations from the community to help cover expenses during this period are most welcome, Balletta said. The quickest way to donate is to follow the instructions on WISH’s website, www.wishshelter.org. Donations can also be mailed to WISH, P.O. Box 642, Garberville, CA 95542.
WISH, along with Humboldt Domestic Violence Services, is also co-sponsoring a “quarter craze” auction at the Redway School gym on Saturday, March 23, to raise money for the Jennifer Bushnell Memorial Fund, Balletta announced.
A “quarter craze” auction is a combination of an auction and a raffle. Participants pay five dollars at the door and are given a numbered auction paddle. The value of each item is determined by the vendor who donated it. Everyone who wants to bid on the item puts a quarter in a bowl for each $20 of value.
The auctioneer then draws a paddle number from the bidders’ numbers to determine who wins the item.
In addition to the auction, there will be a regular raffle and locally made crafts items for sale. Participants will also be able to buy a homemade Mexican dinner, drinks, and desserts.
Angie Gillam, who is organizing this event, said she attended a quarter craze auction recently, and she found it to be a lot of fun and a great way to raise money for a good cause.
The Jennifer Bushnell Memorial Fund honors Garberville resident Jennifer Bushnell, who was murdered in 2007. Money raised will be used to board pets owned by victims of domestic violence while victims are in shelters.
Abusers often use the pet as leverage to get their victim to come back, Gillam explained. Victims are more likely to seek help if they know their pets will be safe.
Auction doors open at 4:30 p.m. on March 23. More details will be available next week.
Volunteer Training
Free training for WISH volunteers will be offered at the Civic Club in Garberville on the first two Saturdays in April, April 6 and 13, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
The training is geared to people who want to do street outreach and trauma assistance, Balletta said. Different topics will be covered at each class, but interested persons can attend one or both. Advance sign-up is not necessary, Balleta said.
For more information, call the WISH office at 923-4100.
NorCan Workshop
NorCAN, the Northern California Association of Non-Profits, is offering a strategic planning workshop at the Garberville Civic Club on Friday, April 26, Amie McClellan reported to the participants.
Members of non-profit boards and staff are encouraged to attend to learn techniques for developing strategic plans and evaluating their progress.
All non-profits should make a strategic plan and review it once a year because it creates a “map of priorities” and a measure of how well goals are being fulfilled, SHWT secretary Kathy Epling noted.
Details, including cost of the workshop, have not yet been worked out but further announcements will follow, McClellan said. For more information, call her at 223-3063.
Only half a dozen people attended last Wednesday’s meeting, and when the announcements were completed the group had a lively informal discussion of community issues.
SHWT holds a general meeting, open to the public, on the first Wednesday of every month from noon to 1:30 p.m. at the Civic Club in Garberville. The next meeting is scheduled for April 3.
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