Willamette Athletics will be accepting donations of cash and supplies throughout the month of October to benefit the Center for Hope and Safety. Donations will be accepted at ALL home athletic events during the month.

By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications with assistance from Leslie Shevlin and Andrea Doyle Hugmeyer

SALEM, Ore. --The Willamette Athletic Department is helping support Domestic Violence Awareness Month on campus and in the community during October. With that in mind, the Bearcats are collaborating with the Gender Resource and Advocacy Center at Willamette in sponsoring several activities throughout the month. Willamette athletes will be wearing purple t-shirts when warming up for many of the home events and fans are encouraged to wear purple at the designated home events in each fall sport. Also, purple ribbons will be distributed to spectators during each of the designated events.

A month-long project at home athletic competitions will be to accept cash donations and supplies to benefit the Center for Hope and Safety. You also can drop off donations at the GRAC or at the Bistro on campus.

Fans are encouraged to attend a Bearcat Domestic Violence Awareness Athletic Even. Student representatives from the GRAC, Sexual Assault Response Advocates (SARAs), the Willamette Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC), and the Alpha Chi Omega sorority will be accepting donations and answering questions at each of the following events:

Cross Country - Saturday, Oct. 2, Charles Bowles Willamette Invitational, 9:30 a.m.
Volleyball - Friday, Oct. 8, vs. Pacific, 7 p.m.
Football - Saturday, Oct. 16, vs. Lewis & Clark, 1 p.m.
Women's Soccer - Saturday, Oct. 23, vs. Whitman, 12 p.m.
Men's Soccer - Saturday, Oct. 23, vs. George Fox, 2:30 p.m.

Leslie Shevlin, associate athletics director and senior woman administrator, along with Andrea Doyle Hugmeyer, director of the Gender Resource and Advocacy Center, are providing leadership for the various projects related to Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Workers at the GRAC as well as members of the Willamette SAAC are combining their efforts in support of the month's special activities.

Domestic Violence Awareness Month is devoted to supporting survivors and those who support them, including friends, family, advocates, and counselors. Attention will be focused on understanding how abuse impacts relationships and communities. Willamette Athletics and the GRAC hope to encourage others to learn how to practice healthy, respectful behaviors with one another and to take action to prevent domestic violence.

On Friday, Oct. 8, everyone is encouraged to wear purple to increase awareness of domestic violence. On social media, you can post a picture of yourself and your friends wearing purple along with the hashtag #SECUREwearspurple and tag @secure_wu and @thegrac_wu. This activity is sponsored by SECURE, a mental health and wellness group for student-athletes at Willamette University.

SECURE also is hosting the OneLove workshop on Oct. 8 at 5:30 p.m. in the Prothero Classroom at the Sparks Athletic Center. The workshop will inform participants about the differences between healthy, unhealthy, and abusive relationships, and how to be supportive of one another.

Later in the month, the Willamette SAAC will sponsor an event with Special Olympics Oregon to focus on healthy relationships.

The GRAC, through the leadership of Willamette's SARAs, has provided the Clothesline Project that is displayed between Smullin Hall and Eaton Hall on the Willamette campus. The artwork displays supportive messages, statements of solidarity, and experiences of survivors.

In addition, the Bistro will be featuring a special cookie in honor of Domestic Violence Awareness month during October. It is the lemon lovegood cookie with purple icing.