November 20, 2020

We are forever grateful to have a group of such empowered young women in our corner! 

We asked Sidney Dutcher, the Beta Chapter President of Theta Alpha Sigma Sorority, to tell us more about the group's philanthropy. This is what she said:

"Our organization is Theta Alpha Sigma Sorority, and we are from CSU, Monterey Bay. Our philanthropy is women’s issues with a focus on domestic violence and sexual assault. We work hard to bring awareness about these issues to our campus and our community. We do this through social media posts, events, and working with Lorelei, our Campus Advocate from MCRCC.  

In the past, we have volunteered with the MCRCC in many ways.  We love volunteering at the Together with Love Run, a fundraising event the center throws every year. We also hold events every year during October, domestic violence awareness month; and April, sexual assault awareness month.  For these events, our philanthropy chair works with the campus advocate Lorelei to facilitate conversations about the signs, prevention, and what to do if you find yourself in those situations. 

This year, COVID-19 changed the way that we observed domestic violence awareness month. Our philanthropy chair, Ashly Banos, did an amazing job making the most of the situation, and created meaningful and unique events. We organized a presentation with Lorelei, facilitated a conversation about what our personal boundaries are, and allowed time for people to write an open letter to survivors of domestic violence. We also created a video candlelight vigil to spread awareness of statistics and provide quotes of inspiration. Finally, we did a raffle of a safety basket, of which the proceeds were donated to MCRCC. 

We chose to donate the proceeds to MCRCC because this organization does so much incredible work for our local community. It is such an important resource, and is grossly underfunded. 

By donating to MCRCC, we know that our money is going towards providing a helpline, prevention education, officer training, campus advocacy, and many other incredible resources. This is why we choose to support MCRCC, and will continue to help spread awareness."