Sometimes, making the decision to leave an abusive situation can be extremely difficult — especially if you are unaware of what options might be available for help. And, often making such a decision requires a person to be brave.
BRAVE, a Wrangell nonprofit dedicated to preventing domestic violence and promoting healthy families, will host its Family Resilience Fair 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, May 3, at the Nolan Center. The event aims to connect community members with vital educational resources through a fun and engaging atmosphere.
According to Kay Larson, the group’s secretary, this will be the seventh fair. The event wasn’t held in 2024 due to a schedule conflict in the fall with the town’s annual health fair.
“We kind of traded places with them by moving our fair to the spring when they moved theirs to the fall,” said Maleah Nore, BRAVE’s chairperson.
The organization, whose name stands for Building Respect and Valuing Everyone, emphasizes that fostering community bonds and raising awareness of available support systems are crucial steps in preventing domestic violence. This is particularly important in an island community like Wrangell, where many service providers do not have a physical presence in town.
“Wrangell is served by multiple organizations that aren’t located in the community,” explained Nore. She noted that some services might be unfamiliar to residents due to the lack of a local office. “It’s an excellent opportunity for people to find services they can utilize, when they may not have even realized they were available.”
According to Larson and Nore, the fair is open to “everyone and anyone,” including children, parents, aunts, uncles, elders and even pet parents.
“There’s something for everyone,” Nore said. “It doesn’t matter what your family looks like.”
While addressing the serious issue of domestic violence prevention, organizers intend to create a lively event. Each participating organization is encouraged to offer an activity at their booth, such as a prize wheel or a game, along with distributing information about their services.
Organizations that want to reserve a booth at the fair need to contact Nore by Friday, April 25, at 907-204-0530.
Nore highlighted the social interaction and the opportunity to learn about new resources as her favorite aspects of the Resilience Fair. Despite her efforts to stay informed about family support services in Southeast Alaska, she said she and many other people are consistently surprised by the new programs found at the fair.
“During the fair, we will also be honoring all of the babies that have been born in the Wrangell community since the last fair,” Larson said. “It’s just a way for us to honor our community even more.”
Nore said she is most impressed by the community involvement with the event.
“This fair was basically our love letter to the community,” Nore remarked. “And they gave us a love letter in return with their involvement. So many businesses are involved with making donations for prizes. It really is a wonderful event.”
Both Larson and Nore said the driving purpose behind the fair is to educate and raise awareness about available resources for those in need.
“Getting together and having a good time while learning about each other and available programs is what this is all about,” Larson said. “I’m curious to see how everything goes with this being the first time for our fair in the spring.”
Nore said anyone who has questions about the fair or may be interested in volunteering to help should send her an email at brave.wrangell@gmail.com or call her at 907-204-0530.
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