The Urbana Police Department is partnering with Courage Connection Friday from 3-7 p.m. to host a “fill the box” Donation Drive-Thru for domestic violence survivors.
The donations will go directly to Courage Connection, a local organization that provides shelter, support and other resources for survivors of domestic violence. The organization is located at 1304 E. Main St. in Urbana.
Zachery Mikalik, deputy chief of UPD, spoke to The Daily Illini about domestic violence in the Urbana area and the upcoming drive.
Mikalik said that since Chief Larry Boone’s arrival to the department, UPD has started using data to critically examine crime in Urbana.
“We found that interpersonal violence was the leading driver of crime in Urbana, and so we started looking at ways to help alleviate that, knowing we couldn’t do it on our own,” Mikalik said.
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With the holiday season approaching, Mikalik said UPD wanted to help the community.
“We understand that, around the holidays, it can be particularly difficult for families who are going through trauma, and the Courage Connection directly helps families who are going through trauma,” Mikalik said.
UPD began seeking community partners for the drive and decided on Courage Connection — an organization founded in 1971 as one of Illinois’ “first battered women’s shelters.”
The police department reached out to Courage Connection to see how they could help. Courage Connection told UPD it needed a variety of items, especially with the holiday season approaching.
“We thought, ‘What better way than to use our platform to try to encourage people to donate?’” Mikalik said. “We started internally with the city employees and then it has since grown to our community.”
The Urbana Police Department is located at 400 S. Vine St. in Urbana. Per the press release, vehicles can enter from the east on Urbana Avenue and proceed up to the drive towards the first fire bay, before entering the fire bay to drop off their donated items.
Various hygienic supplies are needed as well as dishware. For a full list of items, donors can refer to the wish list. Individuals can shop locally and drop the items off in person or order items from the wish list and have them shipped directly to Courage Connection.
The press release also cites other ways to support the drive, including by donating directly to Courage Connection.
UPD is not stopping its efforts to combat domestic violence with the drive. UPD continues their efforts to end domestic violence.
“One of the big things that we’ve been doing is collecting data,” Mikalik said.
UPD found that domestic violence is centered around where other crime occurs.
Mikalik said local agencies hope to more effectively deploy community resources to address domestic violence in the area.
“What we hope to do is use this data and partner with other resources in the community to help them prioritize where they put their outreach,” Mikalik said.
Mikalik wants to remind those who are suffering from domestic violence that they are not alone and “there are people out there who care.” He said abusers often make their victims feel like no one cares.
He encouraged community members to support the drive and added that “this is just one of the ways that we’re trying to help out during the holidays.”
