FBC Las Cruces, the First Baptist Church at 4201 N. Sonoma Ranch Blvd, donated $1,000 worth of gift cards to the Las Cruces Police Department’s Victims’ Assistance Unit on Monday.
The donated cards, in turn, will be used by VAU advocates to help purchase essentials such as food, clothing and other items commonly needed by victims who have been displaced or negatively affected by violent crime in Las Cruces.
“We’re very appreciative and we wish to thank the kind people at FBC Las Cruces who are assisting in our efforts to help the community,” said Judith Ann Baca, program coordinator for LCPD’s Victims’ Assistance Unit. “Our advocates assist hundreds of victims and underserved families throughout the year, and this donation will help us provide a better service to our community.”
The Victims’ Assistance Unit has served 628 victims of crime during the current fiscal year and CIRT volunteers have contributed more than 5,100 hours of service during the same time period.
The Las Cruces Police Department’s Victims’ Assistance Unit, the first law enforcement-based victims’ assistance unit in New Mexico, is comprised of six full-time victim advocates and 18 volunteers who are part of a Crisis Intervention Response Team that responds to emergency callouts initiated by Las Cruces police officers and detectives.