Run for the Children donates $18,000 to Virginia’s House

Run for the Children donates $18,000 to Virginia’s House News Staff Wed, 06/19/2024 - 4:36 pm

• (THOMAS WALLNER | THE GRAHAM LEADER) Members of Virginia’s House accepted an $18,000 check from the Run for the Children board Tuesday, June 18 from proceeds raised from the run and auction. This year’s event was the 19th held in Graham, with almost $240,000 raised since its start.

Thomas Wallner editor@grahamleader.com

Through the efforts of the Run for the Children event, $18,000 was raised for Virginia’s House and presented to the local organization this week.

The event board met with staff from Virginia’s House to present the check Tuesday, June 18. The organizations announced that in 19 years the event has raised a total of $239,000 for Virginia’s House.

Run for the Children is a 10K, 5K and 1K Fun Run fundraiser which was held Saturday, April 27 on the Graham downtown square. Sponsor donations, an online auction and registrations for the run were combined for the fundraising donation.

Virginia’s House, in Young County, and Dr. Goodall’s House, in Stephens County, meet the needs of abused, neglected and traumatized children through programs of prevention, advocacy and support. The two centers offer services to Young, Stephens and Throckmorton counties.

Virginia’s House Executive Director Susie Clack said that many advocacy centers do not receive donations of this size and the members of the local organization appreciate all the support given through the event each year.

“Our family advocates and child advocates really appreciate it (as well as) everyone on the board does. Especially these days, everybody on my team hears me talking about all the compliance and strings attached (with funding),” Clack said. “…We are very fortunate. This is a big blessing.”

Former Graham resident Dora Cawley started the run 19 years ago after experiences with traumatized children during her second year of pediatric residency. She wanted to do something to help the victims when she later moved to Graham with her husband.

“When I went through my pediatric residency, I was seeing children who were victims of abuse and how young they could even be,” she said. “It was just horrifying, but I learned …a Child Advocacy Center was now in existence just kind of in the nation. Of course, that wasn’t even close to being in Graham yet. I was thankful that a child could go somewhere (and only have to) tell their story one time.”

Run for the Children Board President Kandice Craig, who has been a part of the event 18 of its 19 years, said before the start of the event this year that it was important for supporting area children served through Virginia’s House and Dr. Goodall’s House.

“These are funds that just go right back into all these communities,” Craig said. “We try to raise as much as we can for the year so they can use it to do whatever they need to do to help the kids of our community and of the surrounding communities here.”

Craig’s mother, Toni Stansell, has served as Run for th Children board member for 18 years for the run and said along with providing an event for the community, it serves a purpose of community awareness.

“I think making awareness to people that Virginia’s House is here and Dr. Goodall’s in Breckenridge is a really big thing,” Stansell said. “I’m proud to brag about it because you guys (at Virginia’s House) put the band aids on the hurts.”

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