Child Rescue Coalition’s Fourth Annual “Eat, Drink And Be Giving”
Angie Wiltse and Bill Wiltse, President of Child Rescue Coalition
Child Rescue Coalition’s Fourth Annual “Eat, Drink And Be Giving” Gala Raises $275,000 To Help Eliminate Child Sexual Exploitation
Law Enforcement Community Celebrated for Its Efforts in Catching 11,000 Child Predators
Boca Raton, FL – Over 200 guests raised more than $275,000 at Child Rescue Coalition’s (CRC) fourth annual “Eat, Drink and Be Giving” Gala held at the Delray Beach Marriott on February 22. The funds raised will enhance Child Rescue Coalition’s technological developments, increase law enforcement training and rescue thousands of children from sexual exploitation and abuse.
Cocktails and a silent auction kicked off the inspirational evening which segued into an elegant seated dinner. Detective Kevin West of the Cary Police Department and former ICAC commander of North Carolina was honored as Instructor of the Year and Detective Constable Tom Farrell of the Norfolk and Suffolk Police was awarded Investigator of the Year. Additionally, the nonprofit organization formally announced a record of 11,000 arrests of child predators and the rescue of over 2,500 abused children in the last five years – all made possible by officers utilizing its Child Protection System (CPS) Technology. The system is provided free-of-charge to more than 11,000 law enforcement officials in 50 states and 90 countries and has been invaluable toward helping to put an end to child sexual abuse.
The evening’s keynote speaker was Elizabeth Smart, international child abduction advocate and New York Times best-selling author. Smart shared her story of abduction and abuse and how she overcame it. She addressed similar stories making today’s headlines and imparted messages of hope, strength and persistence in finding survivors. She advocated for “never giving up,” creating support networks of families, friends, and community members and believing in the power of positivity and love. Smart also thanked Child Rescue Coalition and the thousands of volunteers and law enforcement officials who have dedicated their time to the safe return of children and ending child exploitation.
“The sexual abuse of children is a very real evil that is still present in our world today,” said Carly Asher Yoost, founder and CEO of Child Rescue Coalition. “This event was more than an elegant evening with our most dedicated supporters and partners; it was a declaration of our commitment to rescue as many children as possible from this heartbreaking reality and to work with law enforcement to put these horrific offenders behind bars.”
Child Rescue Coalition’s fourth annual “Eat, Drink and Be Giving” Gala was sponsored by TransUnion, Wells Fargo, Gunster, Vegso Family Foundation, Gray Robinson and Furr Cohen.
For more information or to donate to Child Rescue Coalition, please visit childrescuecoalition.org.
About Child Rescue Coalition
Child Rescue Coalition (CRC), a south Florida-based nonprofit organization with global reach, has spent the past decade building the world’s most sophisticated technology to hunt online predators. Through proactive partnerships with law enforcement, the nonprofit’s system has tracked 54 million offenders around the world in order to protect children from sexual exploitation and abuse. With a mission of protecting innocence through technology, the technology developed by CRC has aided in the arrest of more than 11,000 predators and rescued over 2,500 abused children in the last five years. For more information, visit childrescuecoalition.org or call (561) 208-9000.
