Portland, OR. The 30th anniversary celebration for The Northwest Catholic Counseling Center drew 220 people and raised $60,000. At the event, on April 30th, Sheila and John Gillespie enjoyed stories about the early days at NCC. 30 years ago people didn’t talk much about mental health, now people not only to talk about the importance of mental health care, but they also raise money to help pay for it for those in need, and celebrate the dedicated work of The Northwest Catholic Counseling Center (NCC). (photo credit, Soulayvanh Beisel)
Breya Chan-Strong, representing event sponsor Cedar Hills Hospital, can’t wait to start after winning the “Go By Bike” raffle prize.
The theme for the evening was “The Journey of Hope and Healing” and the journey idea carried through the varied raffle prizes to the worldwide flavors of the food. After drinks and dinner, the three founding Sisters of NCC shared how amazed they were that the tiny seed they planted and nurtured 30 years ago had grown into such an amazing community resource.
Founding Sisters, (from left) Sr. Barbara Kennedy, Sr. Lisa Sheridan and Sister Sarah Deeby (far right), are joined by the Servants of Mary Provincial Sr. Mary Gehringer (second from right) to celebrate the 30 year milestone.
Stephen Young, Kathy Kremer, and Kathleen Dailey, check out the “Wines of the World” raffle prize.
The $60,000 raised at the benefit will go to pay for the care for people in our area who are uninsured or underinsured. Each year the Center offers nearly 3,000 counseling or medication management appointments to those most in need. No one is turned away because of an inability to pay.
Here’s a video about the counseling services:
From The Northwest Catholic Counseling Center:
Sponsors of the event included Magnacorp, Providence Health & Services, ClearStar, Cedar Hills Hospital, Servants of Mary, and StevensIS. The media sponsor was Alpha Media. The Maybelle Clark Macdonald Fund provided a challenge match for the evening’s special appeal.
