Be A Hero Event Raises Funds for Child Advocacy Center
One of the best parts of humanity is our ability to turn horrible events into positive turning points.
There is no better example of that than the recent Be A Hero event that happened in September. The event, which was to raise awareness of child abuse, was inspired by what happened to Stephanie Dischinger’s son Alex who was put in the hospital by abuse from his father.
The event was a smashing success, raising $5,000 which was donated to the Child Advocacy Center at the Marshfield Clinic last Friday.
Dischinger was so happy to present the check and was surprised overall by the enormous success of the event.
“I was so shocked. As it got closer to the event, more and more people became interested and signed up. I also was not expecting so many people to sign up that day. That was a very welcomed surprise,” she said.
Not only did they raise a considerable amount of money for the cause, but the event had many participants, especially for a first-time event.
“We had almost 200 registered participants, not counting the younger kids. The amount of people that came to support the cause for the first year proves that child abuse prevention efforts are needed in the surrounding communities. Too many of the people that came to the event or donated in any way – sadly had been touched by child abuse,” Dischinger said.
Of course, this cause is very dear to Dischinger.
“As you know, my son is a survivor of child abuse. I, like many others, had no idea how prevalent child abuse is until after his abuse. I shared his story with hopes to save another child’s life. We touched on all different forms of child abuse, as unfortunately, all forms of child abuse happen too often. The event got people more aware that child abuse can happen to anyone’s child, and with that we can work toward the ultimate goal – prevention,” she said.
Most of the money will be used by the Child Advocacy Center to create a support group for families dealing with the ravages of child abuse, in addition to some being used to help spread awareness and prevention of the cause.
And if you didn’t get a chance to attend this year’s event, simply mark your calendar for the next one, April 28, 2018, taking place during Child Abuse Prevention month. Also, you can check out the groups Facebook page for more info or smaller events they will be participating in in the meantime.
Any event like this takes a village to pull off and Dischinger is thankful for the help she received.
“Events like these cannot happen without dedicated committee members, volunteers, sponsors and donors. Thank you to the Marshfield Clinic, for partnering with me and my committee to make this event happen,” she said.
