Josie Smith, director and principal of Century 21 Josie Smith & Co, was also a guest speaker on the night. She spoke about her own experience as a DVAC client in the past, after going through a similar situation herself.
“A lot of them just wanted to be there to support me and to support my journey and the story I was telling on the night,” Josie says.
That personal connection helped bring extra people – and extra dollars – through the door. Josie’s outreach to local businesses and personal contacts helped secure more sponsors and ticket sales, and brought bidders to the auction.
She estimates the collaboration helped raise at least another $20,000 for DVAC on the evening.
The agency’s support does not stop at the event. Century 21 Josie Smith & Co donates $100 to DVAC for every second property sale, funded by the company.
The first donation from every sale goes to Hannah’s House, which supports homeless young women in Ipswich.
The office has also committed to free property management, for as long as the agency is in business, for DVAC’s Homes for Hope initiative. The project is building transitional housing for people fleeing domestic violence.
DVAC has already secured funding for 10 homes and is working to raise money for 10 more.
“Because government funding for services such as DVAC is quite limited, they do rely a lot on community support and sponsorships,” Josie says. “Us being able to offer free property management frees up their resources, and gives them peace of mind the homes are being managed effectively.”
Josie credits DVAC’s CEO Amy Carrington and her team for driving the event and the wider Homes for Hope initiative.
“The event itself was to celebrate 30 years of DVAC providing unwavering support to people experiencing or fleeing DV in our local community,” Josie says. “I just believe we should all be giving back to our local community.”