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When I was assaulted I wanted to tell the police. Because I was a male and fit I was told it if I hadn’t fought back the it was possible I could be arrested for sodomy because the person who assaulted me was a male. It took me years and still as I start to seek help I run into programs still labeled Women’s Services, with a small caption down the page that says “we serve men too.”  I was told today by a rape crisis center that they didn’t have support groups for men other than batterers intervention programs. They invited me to a trauma class and said there was usually one or two males that attended. One man in a room full of women that statistically had been traumatized by women.  I have had the experience of showing up at women’s services programs and having the police called “because I was a suspicious man on the property.” All I am now is suspicious of any organization’s desire to serve and protect me. Click here to share your story of being believed or not. Click here to learn more about our Start by Believing San Antonio campaign.

Video by Texas Healthy Living. Drone footage taken on March 5th, 2016 at Run 4 Hope 5K in San Antonio, TX, hosted by The Rape Crisis Center. “There’s a superhero in all of us… We just need the courage to put on the cape.” About Texas Healthy Living Texas Healthy Living is a Health Network composed of Leading Doctors, Dentist, and Health Professionals who exemplify our highest standard of patient care. Texas Healthy Living features some of Texas’ leading medical specialists and is the premier online resource for the latest health realted news, informative medical videos, and a Directory of Leading Texas Doctors and Health Professionals you can trust.

Dear Friends of RCC: On January 15, 2016, The Sexual Assault Response Team which includes The Rape Crisis Center suffered a great loss. Shelley Blalock Botello, the program coordinator for the sexual assault nurse examiner program at Methodist Specialty and Transplant Hospital was taken from her family, her friends, and this movement suddenly. Shelley, who dedicated her life to helping survivors of violent crimes, had championed this cause for over 20 years. The last email I received from Shelley was a response to an invite for a fundraiser where she simply and excitedly replied, “I just signed up! Looks like fun! Shelley.” She was always the first to volunteer, the first to compliment, and the first to encourage. She was truly the heart of the response team – that’s how we saw her anyway. In this line of work, there is so much loss: loss of a sense of safety, loss of a peaceful reality, and sometimes the loss of faith. However, Shelley knew how to conquer that. Despite the thousands of forensic exams she individually completed, she never lost hope that our world could change for the better. Her leadership, her positive and caring ways, and her smile were infectious; […]

The members of Driven to Care, a regional philanthropy program of Discount Tire, have been ambassadors of The Rape Crisis Center since 2013. From simply spreading the word about our services to organizing fundraisers (as pictured above for a craft and wreath auction), we can’t begin to explain how huge of an asset they are to us; due to their support, we were able to maintain two counseling experts and our youth prevention educators. We caught up with Donna Wrona from Driven to Care to talk about their outlook on our partnership. What is Driven to Care’s motivation for partnering with The Rape Crisis Center? Donna: Driven to Care is passionate about making a change for the better in the communities that Discount Tire services. We knew that there was a dire need for awareness, support and financial help to put an end to sexual violence. We met with Miriam, toured the facility and knew in our hearts that we could make a difference not only within the community but also for the healing of a few of our Driven to Care ambassadors and many others of whom suffer in silence. The potential to save anyone from the pain that sexual violence causes an entire family was undeniably important to everyone […]

This is a problem that affects everyone – whether or not they realize it – and is a problem that is far too big to ignore.

During November, the 32nd Medical Brigade Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and Prevention team coordinated a drive to collect basic care items such as toothbrushes, toothpaste, creams, soaps and more for the Rape Crisis Center for Children and Adults in San Antonio. Soldiers and civilians from the 32nd Medical Brigade, U.S. Army Medical Department Center and School, U.S. Army Health Readiness Center of Excellence, presented seven large plastic containers containing 2,200 much-needed items to representatives from the center Dec. 2 at the brigade classroom in building 902 on Fort Sam Houston. “Every quarter, events are held to raise sexual assault awareness and prevention,” said Nykita Riley, 32nd Medical Brigade Sexual Assault Response Coordinator and Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and Prevention program manager. “To coincide with the month of giving thanks, we decided to give thanks to the local rape crisis center in San Antonio. “Part of the SHARP program is to also liaison and collaborate with our civilian counterparts,” Riley said. “Anytime one of our Soldiers, family members or civilians report to a sexual assault team, the local hospitals are receiving not only military victim advocates but civilian victim advocates. Many times there are individuals seeking these services and they don’t have some of […]

The Rape Crisis Center’s PREA (Prison Rape Elimination Act) hotline was honored by the The Alamo Area Council of Governments (AACOG), winning the 2015 Community/Non-profit Project of the Year Award on December 9, 2015. This award has been given out annually since 1974 to community projects that contribute to the significant advancement of the AACOG region and/or any communities in the twelve counties of the Alamo Area (Atascosa, Bandera, Bexar, Comal, Frio, Gillespie, Guadalupe, Karnes, Kendall, Kerr, McMullen, Medina, and Wilson Counties). The Rape Crisis Center helped create a crisis hotline for incarcerated survivors of sexual violence in collaboration with the Bexar County Jail. The line helps survivors behind bars be heard in their time of need. When a survivor of sexual violence is incarcerated, the environment can trigger memories of an assault that occurred before incarceration. The crisis staff is there to listen and help them through these difficult times. Once released, they can come to The Rape Crisis Center for counseling; in the long run, this help during their incarceration enables them to return to the community as a better person. This work has been taken on by The Rape Crisis Center staff along with their other duties without extra compensation. The Center is one of the few agencies of […]

United Way of San Antonio and Bexar County honored The Rape Crisis Center’s staff for their contributions as part of an annual employee giving campaign to benefit United Way. In three days, 20 participating Rape Crisis Center employees raised $4,372, surpassing goals and previous agency marks. San Antonio’s United Way provides services to many local residents through diverse programs, from early care for children to the provision of basic needs of families and individuals, all in an effort to change lives. They also provide the 2-1-1 help line for referrals and invest in 141 programs at 70 agencies around San Antonio. The Rape Crisis Center is just one of the agencies that United Way invests in. Once a year, United Way of San Antonio asks that these agencies support United Way and fellow partner agencies by giving during the Care Share Campaign. This year, the Campaign brought in $1,124,646 – 2% more than last year. Overall, 85 nonprofit organizations participated in the campaign with 44 (52%) that had 100% participation, 26 (31%) that met or exceeded their goals, and 45 (53%) that increased funds raised over last year. Among these organizations, The Rape Crisis Center was honored for outstanding performance, having 100% participation, a surpassed […]

SAN ANTONIO — The Rape Crisis Center of San Antonio will celebrate its 40th anniversary November 6th, 2015, at 3:00pm. The Center is located at 7500 US Hwy 90 West, Building 2, Suite 201. The Rape Crisis Center is one of the nation’s oldest and largest providers of crisis intervention and counseling services for individuals impacted by sexual violence and their families. Since its inception as a community-based organization, The Rape Crisis Center has served as a beacon in our community that lights the path of healing and guides the way toward a violence-free city. Special guests include SAPD Police Chief William McManus, Bexar County Sheriff Susan L. Pamerleau, and State Senator Jose Menendez. Senator Menendez will read a special proclamation from the Texas State Senate commending the Center for four decades of 24/7 service touching the lives of literally hundreds of thousands of people in the San Antonio area. In the past year, The Rape Crisis Center was able to answer 16,020 calls on the 24-hour hotline; accompany 883 children, women, and men to the hospital for their sexual assault forensic exams; provide counseling to 1,149 survivors and their loved ones; educate 4,378 youth in middle and high schools on what it means to have a healthy relationship; and present 5,093 community members with discussions on general awareness. […]