CAC Receives $25,000 Grant from O'Reilly Automotive Foundation

With one in five adult women and one in twenty adult men self-reporting that they were a victim of sexual abuse or assault as a child, the odds are, everybody knows somebody. Data like this from the Crimes Against Children Research Center is why Children’s Advocacy Center of North and Northwest Cook County (CAC) serves as a vital community resource. For 35 years, CAC has provided specialized interviewing, ongoing family advocacy and trauma therapy to young survivors of abuse and their non-offending family members.

All services are free of charge, making the support of community partners like O’Reilly Auto Parts, located in eight suburbs within CAC’s service area, absolutely crucial.

“On behalf of our entire team, I want to personally thank the O'Reilly Automotive Foundation for their generous support,” said CAC Chief Executive Officer Melanie Pignotti. “The O’Reilly commitment to our mission will make a profound impact, and we are excited to partner with them to create lasting change in the communities we serve.”

Because of generous funders like O’Reilly, last year CAC provided:

• 460 forensic interviews
• 4,275 hours of mental health services
• 741 hours of criminal justice advocacy for families whose child’s case went to court
• 3,763 hours of ongoing family advocacy services

Those numbers translate into impact best expressed in the words of a young client’s parent: “I appreciate the staff and how the interview went. It made her feel it was a safe place. Everyone was helpful and informative.”

From the forensic interview to the final therapy session, CAC’s goal is to help clients address the trauma, build resiliency and live safer, healthier lives.

“We’re so pleased to partner with CAC to help children heal,” said Julie Gray, president of the O’Reilly Automotive Foundation, Inc., the philanthropy arm of O’Reilly Auto Parts. “Our founders instilled in us the importance of serving, supporting and strengthening our communities. Knowing these children and their non-offending family members have access to immediate help as well as ongoing therapy and resources means so much to us.”

CAC’s grant is part of a year-end round of giving for the O’Reilly Foundation, which awarded $1 million across 35 nonprofits nationwide. It’s the largest distribution of funds from the foundation since its founding in 2020.

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About CAC

Since 1989, Children’s Advocacy Center of North and Northwest Cook County (CAC) has worked to empower the voices of children who have experienced violence, inspire hope and help them overcome their trauma.

Before the existence of CACs, children who reported abuse would have to tell their stories multiple times to multiple people. Children would relive the most traumatic moments in their lives over and over again. CAC changed that.

We coordinate a single interview for the child with our Multidisciplinary Team (MDT) made up of local police, DCFS and State's Attorneys, which limits additional trauma to the child.

• Our Advocates meet with the non-offending parents/caregivers and walk them through the forensic interview process and what they can expect.
• Our specially trained Forensic Interviewers ask the children trauma-informed, age-appropriate questions that get all the necessary information to continue with the investigation. These interviews are viewed live by our Multidisciplinary Team (MDT) and recorded, reducing the number of times a child needs to give their account of the incident.
• Our Advocates continue to help the family navigate the investigative process, connect with other supportive community resources and refer them to CAC's in-house trauma therapy.
• Our Trauma Therapists provide highly specialized mental health counseling to children and their non-offending family members to help them process the trauma and build resilience.

CAC’s primary service area covers 38 north and northwest Chicago suburbs. However, we also conduct courtesy interviews from the collar counties and the City of Chicago, as requested. All services are offered free of charge and in English and Spanish. Staff use the Voyce interpreter app for other language needs. More information is available at cachelps.org.

About O’Reilly Automotive Foundation, Inc.

The O’Reilly Automotive Foundation continues the philanthropic legacy of the O’Reilly family as a dependable community partner, supporting organizations and programs that address issues critical to improving the quality of life for underserved and underrepresented individuals and families. The Foundation concentrates its giving in the areas of economic stability and mobility, workforce development, health and social services and disaster relief.