St. Jude House is one of nearly 300 domestic violence nonprofit organizations across the country participating in the 2018 Allstate Foundation Purple Purse® Challenge, which runs October 2-31. Now in its fifth year, the annual friendly fundraiser, which coincides with National Domestic Violence Awareness Month in October, helps state and local providers of domestic violence services deal with funding gaps.
Funds raised through the Purple Purse Challenge by St. Jude House will go toward providing life-changing services for survivors and their families, such as safe shelter, food, support groups, and financial empowerment programs. To support St. Jude House, visit https://www.crowdrise.com/o/en/campaign/stjudehouse-purplepurse2018.
“The Allstate Foundation Purple Purse Challenge is a crucial fundraising initiative for our organization as the donations are vital to our efforts to help as many women and families affected by domestic violence as we can,” said Carol Highsmith, Chair, St. Jude House Board of Directors. “With the collective community rallying behind our organization now and throughout the year, it also shows survivors that they’re not alone in their journeys to break the cycle of abuse.”
In addition to the money organizations like St. Jude House raise on their own, The Allstate Foundation has dedicated nearly $800,000 in incentive grants. There will be daily and weekly fundraising challenges, and at the end of the Challenge, the nonprofit that raised the most in their division will receive grand prizes up to $100,000.
To support the nonprofits’ fundraising efforts, tennis champion, philanthropist and Allstate Foundation Purple Purse program ambassador, Serena Williams, designed a limited-edition purse—a suede and leather purple backpack. St. Jude House will hold a drawing on October 31st to select the one winner of its 2018 Purple Purse Challenge. Each donor of $25 receives a purple purse charm and one entry into the drawing; every additional $25 donation by the same donor will receive an additional entry into the drawing.
“A purse is symbolic of a woman’s financial domain. We’re thrilled Serena Williams embraced this idea when she designed this practical, every day bag for the 2018 Purple Purse campaign,” said Vicky Dinges, Allstate’s senior vice president of corporate relations. “We’re confident this year’s purse will encourage even more people to get involved and support the participating nonprofits.”
This is the third time St. Jude House has competed in The Allstate Foundation Purple Purse challenge, which last year raised $3.75 million for domestic violence nonprofits across the country. Since the Purple Purse Challenge began in 2014, it has raised nearly $10 million for state and local domestic violence nonprofits. Since 2005, The Allstate Foundation has invested more than $60 million to help empower more than 1.3 million survivors of domestic abuse.
If you or someone you know is in a domestic violence situation, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) or TTY 1-800-787-3224.
Purple Purse is a signature program of The Allstate Foundation, an independent, charitable organization made possible by subsidiaries of The Allstate Corporation. The Allstate Foundation works to create more prosperous communities where people are inspired and empowered to fulfill their hopes and dreams by breaking the cycle of domestic violence, inspiring the next generation of leaders, closing the nonprofit leadership gap and honoring Allstate volunteers. For updates on Allstate Foundation Purple Purse initiatives, follow Purple Purse on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. More information is available at www.AllstateFoundation.org.
St. Jude House, located in Crown Point, IN, pursues a vision where all engage in healthy relationships characterized by the mutual sharing of resources and responsibility. St. Jude House is a catalyst in Northwest Indiana for the prevention, education and awareness of domestic violence and sexual abuse; providing quality, compassionate and effective services to those impacted by abuse.