For Immediate Release
August 3rd, 2011 Contact: Nancy Carroll
Program Director
Phone: (316) 258-9878
ncarroll@catholiccharitieswichita.org
START STRONG WICHITA, a project of Catholic Charities, presents Rock RESPECT 2 Friday, August 26th from 7-10 p.m. in Old Town Farm & Art Market to Build Healthy Teen Relationships
Catholic Charities Wichita and community partners to produce “ROCK RESPECT 2” to promote healthy relationships through Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s national Start Strong initiative and celebrate Prevention Efforts to Pre-empt Dating Violence in Teens
WICHITA, Kan. – START STRONG WICHITA, a project of Catholic Charities, will be hosting “Rock RESPECT 2” to promote healthy teen relationships. The event will feature four Wichita musical acts, fun games, live videography, photography, food, drinks, and dance. The bands include Mercury Rising, James Paul & Co, Bayless, and Behind the Solution. The event will be located at Old Town Farm & Art Market on August 26th from 7-10pm. as part of Wichita’s Final Friday Celebrations. Admission to the event is FREE, so bring your lawn chairs and enjoy some great local music. Attendees are encouraged to visit our website to find out more about Start Strong Wichita and what they represent. www.startstrongwichita.org
START STRONG WICHITA is proud to partner with several Wichita agencies and groups to make this event possible. Community partners for the event include Wichita Area Sexual Assault Center, The Boys & Girls Clubs, YMCA, Wichita Public Schools, WSU Dept. of Sociology, and local businesses including Wichita Perk, Prestigious Films, WichitaInPerson, Cassandra Bryan Design, LLC and RPM Productions.
START STRONG WICHITA is a project of Catholic Charities and builds on the existing work of Choose Respect. It is the largest national initiative ever funded to target 11- to 14-year-olds to promote safe and healthy relationships and prevent teen dating violence and abuse. Catholic Charities was chosen as 1 of 11 community organizations nationwide to receive funding through the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s national program, Start Strong: Building Healthy Teen Relationships (www.startstrongteens.org)
The need for substantive prevention work in Wichita is paramount. One in three high school students will be the victim of dating violence before they graduate. More than 10 percent of all reported domestic violence victims and nearly 50 percent of all reported rape victims in Wichita were under the age of 19. Wichita accounted for 22 percent of all rapes statewide with half of these victims being under age 19. There is a clear need for educational programs and community engagement to reinforce positive teen relationships. Catholic Charities along with partners Wichita Public School District, Wichita Area Sexual Assault Center (WASAC), Wichita State University Department of Sociology and the Center for Community Support and Research have developed a comprehensive community plan for this 4-year initiative to address the community’s needs.
“We are excited to be launching this website in Wichita,” said Nancy Carroll, START STRONG WICHITA Program Director and Violence Prevention Coordinator at Catholic Charities Harbor House, “We know what the students can do to impact their environment and look forward to a future where violence and abuse are no longer tolerated.”
START STRONG WICHITA reaches over 7,750 local teens with Building Healthy Teen Relationship activities with a vision to empower teens age 11 through 14 through education, peer mentoring and support from other adults.
START STRONG WICHITA Teens mentor and teach other teens through a variety of mediums such as small and large group facilitation, live theatre, Art, social marketing campaigns on the air and in print. A One-Act Play entitled “The Outrage” will travel throughout Wichita Public Schools this year depicting how teen relationships can turn violent. They take questions and comments from the audience to inspire real conversations on the topic. These teens receive intense training on teen dating violence and teen sexual assault.
“Teen dating violence is one of the nation’s most serious public health problems. Our health and well-being are critically connected to how we live, work, learn and play,” says James Marks, M.D., M.P.H., Senior Vice President and Director, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Health Group. “Our goal is to create new comprehensive public health models that can both prevent relationship violence and even more help our young people build healthy, positive relationships and that is why the focus on youth involvement is essential.”
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About Catholic Charities
Celebrating 65 years of services, Catholic Charities Inc. – Diocese of Wichita meets vital community needs in south central and southeast Kansas through direct services and advocacy. The mission of Catholic Charities is to “demonstrate the Gospel values of love and justice through service, education, advocacy, and collaboration.” As the social service outreach of the Catholic Church, Catholic Charities helps families and individuals in need without regard to religious affiliation. The result is more than 20,000 lives touched with needed encouragement and support each year. Catholic Charities expresses the belief that each person should be “treated equally with respect and compassion” through its programs and services in the areas of counseling, domestic violence, food and financial, homelessness, multicultural assistance, and senior and disability issues. The agency empowers individuals through education about their personal strengths, rights and options to make informed decisions. Since establishment in 1943, Catholic Charities has remained focused on making a positive difference in the lives of families and individuals. For more information, visit www.catholiccharitieswichita.org.
About Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation focuses on the pressing health and health care issues facing our country. As the nation’s largest philanthropy devoted exclusively to improving the health and health care of all Americans, we work with a diverse group of organizations and individuals to identify solutions and achieve comprehensive, meaningful and timely change. For more than 35 years we’ve brought experience, commitment and a rigorous, balanced approach to the problems that affect the health and health care of those we serve. When it comes to helping Americans lead healthier lives and get the care they need, we expect to make a difference in your lifetime. For more information visit www.rwjf.org.
About Harbor House
Catholic Charities’ Harbor House exists to help women break the cycle of domestic violence through shelter, prevention and outreach services. Since opening in 1992, Harbor House has helped thousands of women and children escape domestic violence. The new shelter facility, that was made possible by the generosity of donors, opened in 2006, making Harbor House the largest domestic violence shelter in the state. This Catholic Charities program is able to make a difference not only in the lives of those who stay at the shelter, but also in the lives of thousands of others who receive outreach services. Last year more than 1,500 women and children were touched by the services of Harbor House, and nearly 300 of them stayed in the shelter. Proceeds from this event go toward making these things possible. Start Strong Wichita is one of Catholic Charities’ Harbor Houses outreach services designed to prevent teen dating violence and help teens to choose healthy relationships which with the ultimate goal of preventing domestic violence and strengthening families.
