Five Pepperdine seniors put their classroom knowledge to work by collaborating with Interface Children & Family Services, a social service agency out of Ventura, Calif., to raise money for their Family Response Team.
Wednesday, the student group consisting of Martine de Gannes, Claire Kewish, Jenny Jorgensen, Cindy Peña and Mimi Rothfus — known as 4|1 PR — collaborated with Interface and the Convocation office to bring Domestic Violence Awareness to campus.
The student group has been working closely with Interface over the last six weeks in order to help the organization fundraise in order to foster the growth of their Family Response Team. Since state budget cuts hindered the means to support the initiative, the student PR group was assigned to develop fundraising methods in order to raise money for the campaign. As a vital part of the Ventura community, Interface’s partnership with Pepperdine students is integral to the continued development of Interface.
“I’m so glad I have had the opportunity to work closely with Interface because the work they are doing is life changing for so many people,” senior Claire Kewish said. “Domestic violence is a serious issue and many people are affected by it, so raising awareness of Interface and supporting them however possible is crucial.”
The student group looks to spread awareness through informing local schools and reaching out to younger audiences to inform them about family violence and how they can contribute to Interface’s cause.
“Interface has been an amazing organization to work with and we’re blessed we got the opportunity to directly help them through executing this campaign we’ve created,” said senior Cindy Peña.
The PR group looks to hold more fundraisers over the next few weeks to help the organization raise the remaining funds. The Pepperdine students hope to help Interface reach is fundraising goal and also bring about greater knowledge of the organization and domestic violence.