CARES Northwest Celebrates 25 Years of Helping Abused Children

PORTLAND, ORE. – Each year, thousands of children in Oregon face physical and sexual abuse, neglect and/or domestic violence. Since 1987, CARES (Child Abuse Response and Evaluation Services) Northwest has put their health and safety first.

To celebrate 25 years of service protecting and healing children in the community, CARES Northwest will host its 25th Anniversary Gala on Friday, Nov. 16, 2012, 6 p.m., at the Leftbank Annex in Portland. The Gala promises a vibrant and inspiring evening of festivities, including a cocktail reception, full-course dinner, award presentation and dancing. The festive event will also honor retiring Multnomah County District Attorney, Mike Schrunk, who was instrumental in the development of CARES Northwest.

For the past 25 years, CARES Northwest has served as a community-based medical program for the assessment, treatment and prevention of child abuse. The program combines the collaborative forces of four of the region’s leading health systems—Kaiser Permanente, OHSU Doernbecher Children’s Hospital, Providence Health & Services and Randall Children’s Hospital at Legacy Emanuel.

“Since opening our doors in 1987, we have served nearly 30,000 children in our medical clinic, and have triaged almost twice that many referrals,” said Kevin Dowling, CARES Northwest program manager. “Most of the children we see are 12 years and younger, with sexual abuse and physical abuse being the most common reasons for referral.

“The need is great and our program is committed to serving all children, regardless of their family’s ability to pay. CARES Northwest relies on generous contributions from the community to ensure our most vulnerable patients receive care.”

Twenty-five years of devotion to improving and enriching the lives of children gives everyone a good reason to celebrate. For more information about the CARES Northwest 25th Anniversary Gala, please contact Kelly Stover, event coordinator, at 503-413-6465 or kstover@lhs.org. To learn more about CARES Northwest, visit www.caresnw.org.