 "Photo: Terence Rushin")
The Crime Awareness and Prevention Education group hosted the Crime Awareness Charity Ball on Thursday, Jan. 25. The theme of the ball was “Giving from the Heart” and over 170 people were in attendance. The event raised over $1,600.
The event was a financial success and was also informative about the current sex slave trade tragedies happening in the Carroll County community.
The charity ball featured a wonderful meal including various meats, cheeses and desserts that were graciously donated by Aramark, a traditional African dance presented by the University of West Georgia’s African Student Association, a newscast that educated the attendees on all of the recipients of the proceeds, performances by Jody Carter, a member of the United Gospel Choir, and the female quartet, “Shades of Red.”
Judge Dennis T. Blackmon was the keynote speaker for the evening.
“I don’t give speeches, I tell stories,” said Blackmon, when he began his speech.
His presentation consisted of a balance between stories that had the entire crowd laughing, and more somber topics including teen pregnancy, drop-out rates and poverty.
The event’s proceeds were evenly distributed between C.A.P.E., the Carroll Rape Crisis Center and Angela’s House.
The Carroll Rape Crisis Center is a non-profit agency. All of their services are free to victims of sexual abuse as well as their families. They provide preventative education to schools, agencies and organizations within the Carroll County community for free.
Angela’s House has existed since 1999. Their goal is to raise awareness of the problem of child commercial sexual exploitation in Atlanta and to provide safe and stable housing for girls that have been living on the streets and have been victims of commercial sexual exploitation.
Cheryl Frasier, C.A.P.E founder and nontraditional student at UWG, is currently a senior and a criminology major. Frasier is a correctional professional in Carroll County and created C.A.P.E. to help educate others in the community about how correctional professionals do their jobs.
“There was a need in the community to bring awareness to crime,” said Frasier.
She decided to create a benefit in the form of a charity ball because it was a good way to honor the people who have fought against crime in an elegant environment.
“We have a passion for standing up against crime,” Frasier said.
Frasier encouraged students to get involved and join the organization. She dreams of eventually having a C.A.P.E. group on every college campus in the state of Georgia.
“C.A.P.E. is a movement made up of extremely diverse people that all have a common goal of standing against crime,” said Frasier.
Diamond Smith, a UWG sophomore, recently joined, and, she said, for good reason.
“It’s not just a mission statement,” said Smith. “They actually serve the community.”
C.A.P.E currently consists of 31 members. The group meets every Thursday at 8 p.m. in the Pafford Building Room 307.
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