DEKALB, ILL, Jan. 6, 2021 — Stage Coach Players (SCP) is seeking to “Spark Hope” this season with a campaign to benefit Safe Passage, DeKalb County’s only Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Crisis Center, as part of their continuing community outreach during the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to “sparking hope,” the theatre group will be continuing their ongoing food drive and fabric giveaway.  Volunteers will be collecting donations for both efforts on Tues., Jan. 12, 2021, from 4 to 6 p.m. in the back parking lot at the theatre at 126 S. 5th Street in DeKallb.

Founded in 1981, Safe Passage provides a wide range of services to support survivors and end violence. Their services include crisis intervention, legal and medical advocacy, shelter, counseling, prevention education, and offender intervention.

SCP’s “Spark Hope” campaign, which will run through Feb. 13, 2021, is collecting cleaning supplies, household items, hair products, hygiene items, clothing and linen and gift cards. To learn more about Safe Passage and for a more specific list of most-needed items, visit safepassagedv.org and, in the menu, click on the “Ways to Give” icon. 

This week’s food donations will be going to the Salem Lutheran Church Food Pantry in Sycamore that, since March 15, 2020, has fed 4, 797 people, helping 493 distinct families, including 117 families who had not visited their pantry before the COVID-19 crisis began.

For the food drive, SCP is collecting non-perishable items such as canned meat, vegetables and fruit along with boxed food and items in plastic containers, as well as paper products. We cannot accept donations in glass containers. Their current needs are outpacing their supply on-hand at this time.

Stage Coach Players is a non-profit community theatre that has been working to provide opportunities for patrons to see live drama and for members to engage in a variety of theatrical activity, including performance, production, and theatre management since 1947. Due to the pandemic, the last performance at Stage Coach Players was “Visiting Mr. Green,” performed the weekend of January 31, 2020. Since that time, organized by their COVID-19 task force, SCP has been funneling the energy of both their members and patrons into collecting food for various DeKalb County pantries, distributing fabric for mask-making, and, like their current “Spark Hope” campaign, collecting specific items for charitable efforts outside of the food pantry arena as needs arise.  

For more information on Stage Coach Players or any of their philanthropic efforts, please visit stagecoachplayers.com or email info@stagecoachplayers.com