MONROE — The Green County Child Advocacy Center (CAC), a community resource for children who have suffered abuse or witnessed crime, reached its phase one goal for their “Grow With Us” capital campaign. Community members and business owners provided monetary donations that helped surpass their phase one fundraising goal of $50,000 in just two months. The first phase of the campaign sought to fund the furnishings that will complete their program remodel and expansion project, slated to be complete in spring of 2024.
Nestled in Monroe in a home-like environment away from court and law enforcement facilities, the center brings together a dedicated team of professionals trained in child abuse investigations, evaluations and family support. Its mission is to provide a safe, comfortable space where children and families can access comprehensive care, from forensic interviews to mental health treatment. The remodel and expansion will help center staff meet the increased need for services in Green County and Wisconsin.
“The Green County Child Advocacy Center is the foundation on which our sensitive investigations involving children are built upon,” said Detective Sergeant Nathan Foltz, Monroe Police Department. “Not only does the Green County Child Advocacy Center provide us all with a safe and comfortable trauma-informed location and interviewer, it also provides the children and their families ongoing mental health treatment to assist them in working through the trauma they have had to endure.”
Phase two of the CAC’s capital campaign aims to raise an additional $50,000 to set the foundation for program sustainability. The program does not receive any tax levy for its daily operations, with all of its funding coming from grant funding through the federal Victims of Crime Act funding and donations. The program shares anticipated reductions in award amounts to crime victim serving organizations across Wisconsin and the United States due to a steep decline in deposits into the federal Crime Victim Fund. The CAC hopes to establish a funding base to avoid any budget shortfalls and continue to plan for program growth in the coming years.
Expanding Access to Mental Health Services
The facility expansion will include an additional private room and entrance in the center’s home-like environment, enhancing accessibility to trauma-focused mental health services for children in our community. Every child who visits the CAC for an interview is offered an assessment and follow-up services, ensuring no family is denied the support they need during difficult times.
“The Green County CAC’s interview services and mental health resources have been instrumental in improving outcomes for children who have experienced child maltreatment,” said Dee Jaye Miles, Children, Youth, and Families Division Manager.
$50,000 Needed to Support Current and Future Programming
At the beginning of December, the Green County CAC’s capital campaign received a $20,000 donation from Colony Brands Foundation, effectively bringing the campaign to its first phase goal of $50,000. The center has set an ambitious second phase goal of raising an additional $50,000 over the next year to support current and future forensic interview and mental health programming.
“The Green County Child Advocacy Center is a true gem in our community. The caring work they do to help children who have been through a traumatic experience often goes unnoticed,” said John Baumann, President, Colony Brands Foundation. “Helping the GCCAC meet the needs of the community and this vulnerable population is one of the single most impactful things that any of us can do.”
Center staff share the anticipated reductions with federal Crime Victim Fund funding that supports the program’s operations will impact program capacity and access to services.
“The CAC has experienced an unprecedented increase in both forensic interview and mental health service needs in both Green County and across Wisconsin,” said Stephanie King, CAC Program Coordinator. “Now that our center will be able to meet the physical space needs of the community, we need to ensure our program staff and services can grow with it.”
Donate Today
Tax deductible donations can be made to the Green County Child Advocacy Center Fund through Community Foundations of Southern Wisconsin. Donations can be made by mail to N3152 State Rd 81, Monroe, WI 53566 Attn: Green County CAC Community Fund or online at https://cfsw.fcsuite.com/erp/donate/ and search Green County Child Advocacy Center Fund. Follow campaign progress and ways to donate via their Facebook page.
About the Green County Child Advocacy Center
The Green County Child Advocacy Center (CAC) is a program of the Children, Youth, and Families Unit. The CAC uses a multidisciplinary response, which allows for service providers within the center and professionals on its team to assess for appropriate referral needs, effectively respond to the victims we serve, assist in stabilizing the lives of children and families, and respond to the emotional, psychological and physical needs following victimization.
The Green County Child Advocacy Center is unique as it is the only government service attached CAC in Wisconsin and it is staffed by social workers and a therapist with the Children, Youth, and Families Unit of Green County Human Services. The program is funded primarily through the Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) and the Children’s Justice Act (CJA).