MEDIA RELEASE: Secretary Pate joins Centers Against Abuse & Sexual Assault to promote resources available to northwest Iowa residents

SIOUX CITY – April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month and Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate is working with a northwest Iowa victims' advocacy organization to inform residents about resources available to them. Secretary Pate joined the Centers Against Abuse & Sexual Assault (CAASA) Wednesday morning in Sioux City to promote some of those services.

Among the resources available for survivors of abuse and sexual assault is Iowa's Safe at Home address confidentiality program. The goal of the program is to make it easier for survivors to keep their addresses off public records so they can't be found by their abuser. Safe at Home is administered by Secretary Pate's office.

"We are continuing to raise public awareness of the program so that survivors of these crimes can use this program when the time is right for them," Secretary Pate said. "A lot of these folks are looking for a way out of an abusive situation, but they don't know where to go. Safe at Home can help give them a way out."

Iowa's Safe at Home program serves more than 1,200 participants in 73 counties. For more information, visit SafeatHome.Iowa.gov.

"We appreciate the work Secretary Pate and his staff do to provide an address confidentiality program, Safe at Home, to survivors of sexual assault, human trafficking and other crimes," said Stephanie Henrich, executive director of CAASA. "Their assistance in raising public awareness of sexual assault and human trafficking here in Iowa is vital. With many at-risk, underserved populations in our area, public knowledge and open discussion are our best tools to prevent assaults."

CAASA serves 19 counties in northwest Iowa. Their services include counseling, emergency shelter, hospital accompaniment, legal accompaniment, medical accompaniment, and 24-hour crisis response to survivors of sexual abuse and their loved ones. All their services are free and confidential. For more information, visit caasaonline.org.

A photo of Secretary Pate with CAASA staff is attached to this email. Pictured from left to right are Iowa Safe at Home Program Administrator Christy Johnson, Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate, CAASA Executive Director Stephanie Henrich, Bilingual Sexual Assault Victims Advocate for Woodbury County Becky Lozano, and Sexual Assault Victims Advocate for Woodbury County Pamela Brandt. It is available for your use.

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