Survivors to 'Speak Out' in student-sponsored event
Published 04.13.2023
A pair of campus organizations are partnering on a "Speak Out Social" to raise awareness of domestic violence and sexual assault, as well as donations for the YWCA Northcentral Pennsylvania's Wise Options floor.
The event, co-sponsored by Human Services and Restorative Justice Club and Sigma Pi Fraternity, is scheduled from 6-10 p.m. Friday in Penn's Inn (Bush Campus Center, second floor). It coincides with April's designation as Sexual Assault Awareness Month, and will feature survivor statements and informational resources.
"If we can reach out and help our community benefit an organization like the YWCA and HSJ Club, then we are doing what we are supposed to: helping and benefiting our community and giving back," Dennis M. O'Donnell, president of Penn College's Sigma Pi chapter, told WNEP-TV. O'Donnell and Krystle J. Richardson, president of the HSJ Club, spoke with Newswatch 16's Chris Keating for a story that aired during Wednesday's broadcasts.
Keating also interviewed Shantay Hall, a member of the YWCA's medical advocacy and prevention education team. A longtime nonprofit organization on a mission to eliminate racism and empower women, the Williamsport YWCA has provided a magnitude of services for 125 years to promote peace, justice, freedom and dignity for all. Among them is Wise Options, which offers comprehensive crisis and counseling services to victims of violence – along with emergency shelter, and accompaniment to medical appointments and court appearances – to all genders and ages.
More information can be found in the event flyer: