SIDEBAR Fall 2017 - 19

MONTGOMERYBAR.ORG

SIDEBAR FEATURE

MCAP Happenings!
By Mary C. Pugh, Esq., Executive Director

I

hope that you all enjoyed a restful and
memorable summer. The summer for
MCAP certainly has been memorable
and exciting. MCAP welcomes Heather
Evans as our new full-time Development
Director. MCAP is thrilled to work
with Heather, as she shares a wealth of
enthusiasm and experience to help MCAP
grow our capacity to respond to the everincreasing demands for our services. With
25 years of experience in development,
Heather's expertise in philanthropy includes
fundraising planning, strategic planning,
donor cultivation, program development,
grant writing and many other development
skills. After graduating from Washington
College, Heather then obtained her
Master's Degree from the University of
Pennsylvania in English and Writing.
Since then, Heather has worked in all
areas of development with her most recent
position as Institutional Giving Manager
for Planned Parenthood Southeastern
Pennsylvania. Her passion for children
and MCAP's mission is tangible and
contagious. In her free time, Heather enjoys
hiking with her dog, checking out local theatres, reading, and yoga
- she recently completed a yoga teacher-training program! Stop in
to meet Heather and welcome her to the MCAP family.
MCAP continues to serve abused and neglected children and
has helped more than 5,100 children in over 3,700 cases to date.
One wonders where these helpless children would be without
the independent neutral advocates representing their unique
perspectives. With the increasing complex natures of our cases
involving heroine, opioid, alcohol and other drug addictions,
mental health issues and the increase in trafficking cases in our
area, MCAP has experienced a 40% increase in the number of
children served in 2016 compared to 2015. Currently, this upward
trend continues for 2017 as we have an overall 31% increase in
referrals compared to this time last year.
For the first time, and hopefully only time, in thirty years,
the Run for the Hill of It was cancelled. On July 18, 2017, the
National Weather Service announced a "Summer Nor'easter,"
and issued a severe and dangerous flash flood warning through
the greater Philadelphia area, especially along the I-95 area.

Concerned with the dire forecast, the
Philadelphia Parks & Recreation Office
directed that the Run for the Hill of
It (and many other outdoor activities)
be cancelled. Although at the time of
cancellation, no rain had appeared, the
Office of Parks and Recreation expressed
concerns about dangerous flash floods, the
high water level at the Wissahickon Park
and the recent fall of trees in Fairmount
Park. As fate would have it, the Summer
Nor'Easter spared Fairmount Park with
a smattering of rain, leaving runners and
volunteers disappointed. Lesson learned
from the 2018 Run for the Hill of It
include that it is more difficult to cancel
a race than launch one; a rain date is a
must; and the cancellation policy needs
to be highlighted. The most important
lesson of all is that safety is paramount and
we celebrate that the storm by-passed our
area.
We are busy planning important
educational and friend-raising events.
Please mark your calendars for upcoming
events:
MCAP CLE - THE ART OF REPRESENTING
CHILDREN IN THE LEGAL ARENA
Montgomery Bar Association
Friday, October 20, 2017
MCAP SALUTE TO HEROES HONORING
EMMY AWARD-WINNING TRACY DAVIDSON
Marriott~West Conshohocken Pennsylvania
Saturday, November 18, 2017
MCAP LUNCH & LEARNS
Thursday, December 12, 2017 at noon
Thank you all for supporting MCAP and allowing us to give
children chances to live in safe and healthy environments. If you
are not an MCAP supporter, please contact our offices and find
out how to get involved. Your services will make a difference in a
child's life and help unlock the Superhero inside every child.

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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of SIDEBAR Fall 2017
