Just Having Fun
by
Maryann Miller
The Annual Lady's Night Out sponsored by the North East Texas Child Advocacy Center (NETCAC) headquartered in Winnsboro encourages women to come and "Discover the Child Within." In that vein, the 75 attendees at the recent dinner held at the First Baptist Church in Winnsboro were encouraged to enter into a spirit of play throughout the evening.
As in years past, the MC was Danielle Rohrbeck, President of the NETCAC Winnsboro Volunteer Chapter, and she did an outstanding job of keeping the fun going. The theme for that evening was "being a Diva", and when people came forward for door prizes, they had to show her their Diva walk.
Every year a Queen for the Night is randomly selected from ticket stubs, and this year Amelia Taylor from Gilmer 
was chosen. This was her first year to attend the event, and she was a bit of a hesitant Diva at first, but after being crowned by Danielle and getting the sash and gift card donated by Copper Leaf Spa, she sashayed back to her seat. "I've never been here before," she said later. "My friend, Linda Keller who is on the board (of NETCAC) persuaded me to come. I'm glad she did. This is a lot of fun." (Picture on right: L-R: Amelia, Danielle Rohrbeck)
Gayle Gearner -pictured here on the left of Heidi Joiner - was also a first time attendee. She said her daughter suggested she sponsor a table, and she ended up sponsoring two, one for Winnsboro Hardware and one for Poultry Plus. "I've never been to anything that was just for ladies and for playing like this ," she said. "I think it's fun. Everybody needs time to relax and just have fun and this has been one of those times."
Gayle was one of the ladies randomly selected to get up and cheer for the Red Raiders and win a Red Raider camp 
chair. Everyone who participated had to come up with their own cheer, and Gayle did not hold back.
Lovely decorated tables are featured at the event every year, and this year the decorations celebrated seasons and Holidays. Pictured here at the Winter Table are (L-R) Cheryl Ford, Kim Shirley, and Vickie Swann from Copper Leaf Spa.
The tables were sponsored by local businesses and individuals, and all the prizes given out that night were donated. Jennifer Williams, Volunteer Coordinator for NETCAC, said that they used part of the money raised from sponsors to purchase prizes, "So everyone could get something to take home with them."
Jennifer thanked all the sponors and donors, then spoke briefly about NETCAC and what it has accomplished over the years, mentioning that just in the Winnsboro Office they have served 4,800 children since they first opened their doors. The purpose of NETCAC is to offer a safe child friendly environment to children between the ages of 2-17 who have been sexually or severely physically abused or have been a witness to a violent crime.
(For a full list of sponsors and donors click HERE)
The children who come to NETCAC are allowed to tell their stories in a non-leading way to a trained forensic interviewer rather than having to repeat it multiple times to multiple agencies involved in the investigation and prosecution, there for reducing the trauma to the child. The Center saw 527 new cases in 2009 with 48% of those coming from Upshur and Wood counties. With the increase in cases from Upshur County(24%), last year the board approved setting up a satellite office in Gilmer to make it easier for families and agency partners to obtain services from the center. This is the second satellite office for the agency that already has one in Sulphur Springs.
Jennifer encouraged the ladies at the dinner to consider volunteering at one of the offices. "Even though we deal with such difficult issues as abuse, the work is very rewarding," she said.
Deborah Chelette-Wilson, a Licensed Professional Counselor, was the guest speaker for the evening. She spoke 
about how much we need a community of kind and caring people to help us deal with the stresses of life. "There is a lot of power in relationships to either hurt us or heal us," she said. "The kind of relationships we form here tonight are healing."
She also talked about the strong women of history that most people don't know about because history books have focused on the contributions made by men. She said that after finding a Web site for The National Women's History Project she was inspired by the stories of women who made a significant impact on the world of their time. "There is a real sense of their power coming through their stories," she said. "And that empowers us all."
By all standards, the evening was a huge success. Everyone enjoyed "playing" for a little while, and the room was alive with talk and laughter. Shannon Monk and I provided some musical entertainment, and everyone enjoyed singing along with "Froggy Went 'A Courtin", "This Land is Your Land", "Sing, Sing a Song", and "This Little Light of Mine."
Twelve girls from Holy Highway, a Christian school for teenage girls, volunteered that evening and served the dinner and kept glasses and cups filled with refreshments. The event raised about $1,200 for the Center, with more donations to come.
Anyone wanting to sign up as a volunteer should contact the center at 903-629-7588 or via e-mail at info@netcac.org. Please visit them on the Web at www.netcac.org for more information and opportunities.
* * * *