The Child Guidance Center of Southern Connecticut (CGC), a non-profit mental health resource serving children, teenagers, and their families, has received a $50,000 donation from the New York-based Hedge Funds Care. This donation will support both the CGC-led Lower Fairfield County Sexual Abuse Response Team (SART) and the agency’s mental health services for physically abused, sexually abused and seriously neglected children and adolescents.

SART is an inter-agency team integrating criminal justice and protective services investigations and providing comprehensive services for child sexual abuse victims and non-offending parents. The team was the first in Connecticut to receive national accreditation, and serves as a model program in New England.

Hedge Funds Care, established in 1998, is an alliance of hedge fund industry professionals committed to protecting children from abuse and neglect. The group includes money managers, investors, prime brokers, attorneys, accountants, and information providers. Funds are raised through annual Open Your Heart to the Children benefits in New York, San Francisco, Dallas, Chicago, Atlanta, Toronto, and the Cayman Island with anticipated expansion into more U.S. cities as well as Dublin and London. The funds are distributed locally to community based programs that provide:

• Preventionservices to at-risk children and families.
• Treatment for children who have been physically or sexually abused.
• Support services to the non-offending family members of children who have been abused.
• Prevention through training to enhance awareness and understanding of abuse and neglect for children, parents, and community members.
• Training for community members such as teachers.
• Research on best practices in child welfare.
• Legal advocacy to children in crisis.