• For All Seasons Educates the Public About Sexual Assault in April

For All Seasons Educates the Public About Sexual Assault in April
 
With sexual assaults on the rise on the Mid-Shore, For All Seasons is working during Sexual Assault Awareness Month in April to educate the community on the risks, including being a victim of a drug-facilitated sexual assault. For All Seasons’ first “Sip Safe” Campaign launches on April 1. The campaign’s mission is to raise awareness about the risks associated with drug- and alcohol-facilitated sexual assault while promoting proactive behaviors that enhance personal and community safety.
For All Seasons’ staff is collaborating with local organizations, businesses, and colleges to ensure that the issue of drug and alcohol-facilitated sexual assault is widely recognized and actively addressed. Part of this initiative includes distributing free informational resources, drink-spiking prevention scrunchies, and drink cover stickers to local college students and bartenders. Among the tips are how to identify risky situations when enjoying a night out and how to recognize if a drink has been spiked or tampered with (https://forallseasonsinc.lpages.co/sipsafe/)  
Bringing community into the conversation.  Outreach will be done in the public schools, colleges, and local businesses around this year’s national theme, “Together We Act, United We Change,” highlighting the importance of working together to address and prevent sexual abuse, assault, and harassment.
According to Kristy Mirando, Director of Victim Services at For All Seasons, “With sexual violence continuing to harm our Mid-Shore children and adults, as a behavioral health agency and rape crisis center, our agency cares about education and prevention. We know that helping youth and adults to understand what sexual assault encompasses is important. Sexual violence is an umbrella term that includes any unwanted sexual contact. Forms of sexual violence include rape, sexual assault, sexual harassment, or sexual abuse. It also includes a range of behaviors such as unwanted sexual contact or words, online exploitation, exposing oneself to others without consent, and nonconsensual image sharing. We are hoping throughout this month ahead to educate youth and adults about risk and how to avoid situations which may lead to sexual assault.”
In recognition of Denim Day (April 23), For All Seasons is partnering with The Ivy Café in Easton to create awareness and show support for sexual assault survivors through its Denim Day Community Art Project. On April 23, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., community members can come to The Ivy Café on Dover Street in Easton and write supportive messages on patches of denim to show their support for sexual assault survivors. These patches will later be displayed on a large canvas at The Ivy Café and at For All Seasons Rape Crisis Center.
Denim Day is an international day created after an Italian court overruled a 1999 rape conviction because the justices felt that since the victim was wearing tight jeans, she must have helped her rapist remove her jeans, implying consent. The next day, women in Parliament came to work wearing jeans in solidarity.  Local citizens are encouraged to wear denim with a purpose on April 23 to show their support for ending sexual violence and victim blaming. Participants can send their photos of Denim Day to cpalmer@forallseasonsinc.org or tag their Denim Day photos to #DenimDayFAS2025.
Between April 7 and 11, the For All Seasons Rape Crisis Staff will be partnering with the Kent County Public Schools for Sexual Assault Awareness Week. On April 7 from 6 to 7:30 p.m. For All Seasons will present in the Kent County High School cafeteria on “Protecting Teens in a Digital World: Internet Safety & Healthy Relationships.” The presentation is open to high school and middle school parents, guardians, and concerned community members interested in keeping teens safe online, and a light dinner will be served. On April 8, For All Seasons staff will help teachers at Kent County High School facilitate a lesson about Denim Day, and students will participate in the Denim Day patch art project.
For All Seasons will also present Sexual Assault Awareness Month proclamations in Caroline, Dorchester, Kent, Talbot, and Queen Anne’s counties during April.
For further information about how you or your business or organization can participate in Sexual Assault Awareness Month, visit https://forallseasonsinc.lpages.co/sipsafe/ or email cpalmer@forallseasonsinc.org.
For All Seasons provides the highest quality mental health and victim services to children, adults, and families across the Mid-Shore and throughout the state of Maryland. Services are offered in both English and Spanish and include therapy, psychiatry, victim advocacy, 24-hour crisis hotlines, outreach, and community education. For information about For All Seasons walk-in hours, contact For All Seasons at 410-822-1018 or visit ForAllSeasonsInc.org.