Prevention is KeyProject SAFE made the difference in 5,000 students’ lives across Kansas City in 2012.

A message from Susan Miller, CEO

w w w. ro s e b ro o k s. o rg

Become a member of our online community, committed to educating our

neighbors about domestic violence. Check out our blog, RiskHope.

SAVE THE DATEWorld’s Window annual shopping event for RBC!

26TH CABARET BEBE NEuwiRTH

Thank you to all who made Cabaret such a

success!

uRGENT NEEDS LiST

Help with our most critical daily needs

TEENS AND VioLENCE

Verizon Wireless are Champions for Teens

PLEASE REmEmBER RoSE BRooKS CENTER AS SPRiNG BLoomS www.RoseBRooks.oRg

SPRING 2013

CabaretA glamorous evening of dining and entertainment

from the ultimate Broadway star

Proceeds supported Rose Brooks Center’s life-saving programs

Bebe Neuwirth

SPECiAL THANKS To PRESENTiNG PARTNER

DST SySTEmS, iNC

tHaNK YOU, KaNSaS CItY!www.RoseBrooks.org • 816-523-5550 x418

special Thanks to our sponsors for Making the 26th Cabaret such a success!

Presenting Sponsor DST Systems, Inc.

Premiere PartnersInergy / John and Marny Sherman

Sprint

Broadway PartnersResearch Medical Center - Champions for Health

Verizon Wireless - Champions for TeensWells Fargo

Encore PartnersAtterbury Family Foundation

Bank of America Merrill LynchBayer HealthCare Animal Health

Burns & McDonnellCereal Food Processors

CitiCommerce Bank

DeloitteDelta Dental

Colleen Dougherty and Joseph EuteneuerKansas City Chiefs

Kansas City Power & LightKPMG LLP

Morgan Hunter CompaniesRouse Hendricks German May PC

Rose Brooks Center’s Project SAFE includes a four week violence prevention curriculum with a focus on teen dating violence. February was Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month, and Verizon Wireless are our 2013 Champions for Teens partners to help support Project SAFE in-school programming for teenagers who may be experiencing violence in their dating relationships.

In the 2011-2012 school year, 1,300 students attended the four week session.

Week 1 focuses on “Social Support and Healthy Communication.” This includes discussions centered around healthy expression and communication, discovering your sense of self and verbal abuse.

Week 2 addresses “Dealing with Conflict and Anger Control” by exploring topics including coping techniques, problem solving and anger control.

Week 3 focuses heavily on teen dating violence and is entitled, “Dating Violence and Healthy Relationships.” During this week, a Project SAFE prevention specialist explains the definition of teen dating violence, how to identify a healthy relationship and how to identify family issues.

Week 4 includes discussion around “Safety Planning and Safety Behaviors” through topics like the dynamics of abuse and substance abuse. A personal safety plan is developed during this time and teenagers experiencing teen dating violence can use this knowledge to build healthier relationships with peers and family.

We are so proud to have Verizon Wireless as Champions for Teens partners. Together,

Rose Brooks Center and Verizon Wireless are breaking the cycle of domestic violence by putting

prevention first.

Dating Abuse Statistics• Nearly 1.5 million high school students nationwide experience physical abuse from a dating partner in a single year.

• One in three adolescents in the U.S. is a victim of physical, sexual, emotional or verbal abuse from a dating partner.

• Only 33% of teens who were in a violent relationship ever told anyone about the abuse.

• A teen’s confusion about the law and their desire for confidentiality are two of the most significant barriers stopping young victims of abuse from seeking help.

www.loveisrespect.org

At our 26th Cabaret, we met Phillp. Phillip was referred to Project SAFE in 6th grade, which is the first time he met his Project SAFE prevention specialist.

Phillip grew up in a violent home. At his lowest point he asked, “why even live anymore?” He often physically fought with his abusive mother, and eventually, he started fighting in school too. But, Project SAFE intervened. Phillip says that Project SAFE changed his life. We know that Project SAFE made the difference.

We know that prevention is critical to meeting our mission to break the cycle of domestic violence so that individuals and families can live free of abuse.That is why we created Project SAFE. Project SAFE is a comprehensive violence prevention program targeting our community’s most at-risk youth. Students meet in small groups with classmates experiencing similar trauma. Through guided discussion by a Rose Brooks Center prevention specialist, students create a social support structure they are often lacking at home.

Unlike other prevention programs, Project SAFE continues year after year, providing participants with a lasting support system. Phillip told us that he didn’t think he would be able to continue Project SAFE into high school. When he saw the same prevention specialist he had worked with since 6th grade, he was thrilled. He was so happy to have consistency in an often inconsistent life. Children who have a consistent, positive adult role model typically learn to cope with violent experiences in their youth far better than children who are lacking a consistent role model.

As Phillip progressed through Project SAFE, he noticed a change. He noticed that he was no longer fighting at home and in school. He ultimately learned to express himself in a positive way, which for him is poetry. Phillip knows his life was changed. We know that Project SAFE made the difference. And, we know, with your help, we can continue making the difference in thousands of students’ lives each year.

VeRIZoN wIReLess: CHAMPIoNs FoR TeeNs

SPR iNGiSSuEPrevention

Our Most Urgent NeedsAs Spring blooms, you can make a difference for the families living in shelter. Here’s how your help makes an impact:

HOW TO HELP Your financial support is critical. $500 gives one woman and her child one week of safe emergency shelter. $50 provides a one month supply of diapers for a new baby living in shelter.

DoNATE SECuRELy oNLiNE AT www.RoSEBRooKS.oRG

A HOT mEAL Organize a non-perishable food drive to help provide breakfast, lunch and dinner to the 100 women and children living in shelter every day.

FooD DoNATioNS ARE ALSo iN GREAT DEmAND

URGENT BABY NEEDS 60% of our residents are children. We are in need of baby strollers and general baby items: formula, baby wash, baby swings, baby bathtubs, bouncers and diaper bags.

ViSiT www.RoSEBRooKS.oRG/HELP-NEEDS

CLOTHING FOR BOYS RBC needs new or gently used clothing for little boys. Mothers of boys from infant age to 17-years old need help providing their children in shelter with basic clothing needs.

SiGN uP oNLiNE FoR uRGENT NEEDS EmAiLS

BRING RBC TO WORk Have your work team or business support RBC this Spring by hosting a shopping event, collecting urgent needs items with co-workers or sponsoring a Jeans Day fundraiser.

FoR moRE iDEAS, ViSiT www.RoSEBRooKS.oRG/EVENTS

Thank you! Holiday Store 2012

in 2012, Rose Brooks Center provided life-changing support in the form of:

• Reaching 7,120 people through our 24-Hour Crisis Line with additional in-person advocacy and therapy programs that empower women experiencing violence to become survivors.

• Counseling 4,973 children and teens experiencing violence in their lives. Through Project SAFE, they learn how to plan

for safety and build their resiliency.

• Providing 57,696 safe night in our emergency shelter and housing programs.

• Teaching 1,300 young people about teen dating violence and how they can build healthier relationships

Thank you Verizon Wireless for being our 2013 Champions for Teens and supporting

Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month.

Children who experience or witness family violence are at greater risk of mental and physical health disorders and problems. Without treatment, these children are at significant risk for delinquency, substance abuse, school drop-out, and difficulties in their own relationships.

Children may exhibit a wide range of reactions to exposure to violence in their homes. Younger children oftentimes do not understand the meaning of the abuse they observe and tend to believe that they “must have done something wrong.” Children may become withdrawn, non-verbal, and exhibit regressed behaviors such as clinging and whining. Eating and sleeping difficulty, concentration problems, anxiety, and physical complaints are all common.

The mission of Rose Brooks Center is to break the cycle of violence, and prevention is our top priority. Through the innovation of Project SAFE, children and teens dealing with violence in their schools, neighborhoods or homes get counseling at school. They build the confidence and self-esteem needed to progress successfully through school. At the same time, Project SAFE works to integrate a violence prevention curriculum into Jackson County classrooms, with the goal of helping children of all ages learn to make positive life choices and develop healthy relationships.

Project SAFE

Project SAFE provides services to over

5,000 students each year in 40 schools.

Countering long term health effects of domestic violence on childrenSave the Date:

Rose Brooks Center accepts a check from Jan Buerge and her staff at World’s Window after the staff chose to offer gift wrapping services in December for a donation to RBC. They raised over $1,000!

THANK YOU!

8th Annual “Flipping Favorites” Event at World’s WindowThursday, April 18

Shop new and very gently used clothing. All items are $10 and 100% of proceeds benefit Rose Brooks Center.

World’s Window332 W. 63rd Street, Kansas City, MO

Visit www.RoseBrooks.org/Events for updates about this exciting event!

Thank you to Rose Brooks Center volunteers and supporters for making the Holiday store an

amazing success!

For Emergency Shelter:*Twin Sized Bed Blankets*Twin Sized Flat Sheets

*Pillows and Pillow Cases*Towels

For the Women: Deodorant

Reading Glasses (Any Strength)Body Wash (Full Size Bottles)

For the Children:Pull-Ups

Large Sized Children’s DiapersSocks (Size Baby to 4)

Baby Shampoo, Baby Lotion and Baby Oil

Baby FormulaChildren’s Bibles

Strollers/Double-StrollersBaby Swings

Baby Bathtubs Boys’ Clothing (Ages newborn to 17)

For the Pet Shelter:Paper Towels

Doggie Clean-Up BagsGluten Free or Corn Free Dog Food

Large Animal Scale

For Our Housing Units: Washer/Dryer

* Our most Critical Needs

We ask that most urgent need items be in new condition. For a complete list of

urgent needs items and to see which items can be gently-used, please visit

www.rosebrooks.org/help-needs.

This online list is updated regularly to reflect our most critical urgent needs.

Because of you...

“Stopping violence is key. You save a life and if that

woman has kids, you teach her children that they don’t

have to be in a violent relationship. And so I say

donate to Rose Brooks Center. You’ll save more than one life,

you’ll save a generation.”

sTACI, suRVIVoR