Dear Friends,

Welcome to my "Walk for Hope" fundraising page.  I have been employed by Mutual Ground Inc. for almost 16 years.  In that time I have had both the pleasure of witnessing healing and growth, and the pain of seeing tragedy and sadness.

My staff provides sexual abuse and domestic violence prevention programs to children in schools.  Our goal is 3 fold.  We want to EDUCATE students about abuse, INFORM them what to do if they are a victim of a crime and finally EMPOWER them to tell someone about the abuse.  The Centers for Disease Control estimates that sexual abuse is one of the most under reported crimes in the United States.

Most survivors of sexual assault never tell anyone.  The reasons for not telling are numerous.  Fear, shame, guilt, bribery, threats and intimidation are the ways offenders use to get their victims to remain silent.  This silence contributes to many victims never receiving help. No one ever tells them that it (the abuse)  was not their fault.  Victims carry a burden of guilt, shame and offenders walk around free to continue their patterns of abuse.  The average number of victims an offender has in thier lifetime is 9.  The median age for a child to be abused is 9.  67% of all sexual assaults happen to children under the age of 18.

The Prevention Educators at MGI are hero's who work with children every day to make a difference.  They give children tools, safety rules, to recognize situations that are potentially dangerous.  They give children permission to "tell" if anyone touches them in a way that makes them feel unsafe or uncomfortable.  Children are told it is not their fault if this happens to them, and that they NEED to tell a trusted adult if it does happen. 

Our Prevention Programs are just one of many services offered by MGI.  The current budget crisis facing the State of Illinois is seriously impeding the amount and volume of services we can offer.  Already this fall I have turned down 5 schools for services due to our staffing deficit created by the financial instability of the State of Illinois.That means hundreds of students will not received these very valuable safety lessons this year, or counseling for offenses already committed against them. 

Please consider supporting the "Walk for Hope".  All donations are tax free and can be made directly on this safe and sescure website.

You can learn more about Mutual Ground by visitng our website at www.mutualgroundinc.org.

Thank you in advance for supporting the Mutual Ground Inc. Walk for Hope!

Sincerely,

Rhonda Annala