The Rape and Abuse Crisis Service has been chosen to receive about a carload of donations from a Jefferson City community.
The nonprofit organization offers services to victims of domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking. It provides temporary shelter for victims of abuse and connects them with other services in a nine-county region that consists of Cole, Gasconade, Maries, Miller, Moniteau, Morgan, Osage, southern Boone and southern Callaway counties, RACS shelter director Maureen Qualheim said.
The unusual community wishing to donate to the service - Jefferson City-area Pokemon Go trainers - decided several weeks ago to band together for a good cause, said Kendra Lane, a Jefferson City attorney and game-player.
The trainers - people who catch, train, care for and battle with Pokemon - decided in September to do something for the broader community. The group chose a charity - the First Christian Church Food Pantry - created lists of items it needed, got the word out, crossed their fingers, prayed and hoped for the best.
The game-players decided to come together "for something more than just Pokemon," Lane said. "Rather, we decided that our community was going to come together for the greater Jefferson City community."
Pokemon Go is a game developed in 2016 and played on smartphones that use the phones' global positioning system to locate, capture, battle and train virtual creatures, which appear on the phones as if they are in the real world. Shortly after the game was launched, it became a sensation. The game is not as popular as it once was, but more than 140 million people still play it worldwide. Many of them are in Jefferson City.
Each month, trainers have a "community day," a three-hour window in which a given Pokemon (creature) will spawn with a chance to be "shiny," or a different color than normal. On community days, trainers can band together to raid (defeat the shiny Pokemon) - something they aren't likely to be able to do on their own. Once the shiny is defeated, they try to capture it.
Fourteen-year-old Trey Thompson plays Pokemon Go every day. He said he has been able to connect with other people through the raids.
"There are certain events that require us to communicate in order to pursue them," Thompson said. "It starts a discourse."
In any given area, there are about five raids during the day and four at night, he said.
As trainers played, the idea of doing something for charity along with the community day came along, Thompson said.
He said he and his father, who also plays, took diapers, household necessities and canned goods for the first event.
The community day was so successful trainers have decided to do it again - this time for the RACS. Trainers will gather at noon Oct. 21 at Capitol Avenue and Adams Street. A raid is expected to take place 1-4 p.m. Organizers will begin accepting donations about noon and continue as late as necessary to allow participants to contribute, Lane said.
"We had roughly three dozen people participate this last round," she said. "We are hoping for at least two dozen - but our group surprises me every time."
Trainers are already checking to see what RACS can use.
RACS almost always needs certain items. It publishes a list of needs at racsjc.org. Once on the site, click on "donate." That button takes you to a page where you can learn about the benefits of making a financial donation. It also includes a link to the RACS wish list.
The list includes items required at the shelter, such as bath, hand or kitchen towels, washcloths, laundry detergent, bath or kitchen cleaning products, floor-cleaning products, toilet paper, paper towels, deodorant and hairbrushes. It also needs food items like sugar, cooking oil, tuna and corn muffin mix. The shelter accepts gift cards for purchases of meats, fresh fruits and vegetables. Clothing items, pots and pans, and gifts for teenagers also are listed.
Qualheim said RACS is best known for offering a 36-bed shelter for women and children.
"We take in families or those affected by domestic violence or sexual assaults," Qualheim said. "Stalking, date crime, human trafficking - those are the types of crimes we work with survivors on."
The shelter provides victims with food, shelter, personal care products, shampoo, razors, body wash, toilet paper, toothbrushes and about anything else they need.
"We also provide counseling, which is extremely important to families affected by trauma," she said.
Clients might receive counseling, either individually or in groups, which can demonstrate to them that they aren't alone in their trauma.
RACS offers life support groups, which teach clients budgeting and cooking skills. It offers self-esteem groups.
RACS, which is in an undisclosed Jefferson City-area location, provided 7,800 overnight stays for 246 different people last year. It provided thousands of meals for clients.
Many of the organization's clients are referred by law enforcement agencies. It also receives referrals from clients who know of other people who live in similar situations to their own, Qualheim said.
The organization has an advocacy program, in which advocates can provide crisis intervention and emotional support to victims by accompanying them to hospitals, courts and law enforcement agencies. Clients can receive legal advocacy through the Cole County Prosecuting Attorney's Office.
The RACS website and Facebook page provide contact information. It can be reached through its hotlines at 1-800-303-0013 or 573-634-4911.
RACS also does case management, Qualheim said.
"Our case managers are crucial to help with housing and employment opportunities," she said. "They can identify job fairs and help with résumé-building. We help people get on their feet as quickly as possible."