“Walk a Mile in Her Shoes” at APEX, the Athletic and Physical Education CompleX behind Union High School, raised at least $7,000 Saturday for Domestic and Sexual Abuse Services (DASAS), according to Executive Director Kim Kramer.

The fundraising event, in which men wobble around the track in red high heels, was given a leg up by the Cass County Sheriff’s Office, led by Sheriff Joe Underwood, precariously perched in pink pumps.

“My feet hurt already,” said Underwood, setting off trailed by his wife, Cindy, photographically documenting his participation, along with Deputy Police Chief Steve Grinnewald in red sneakers and Prosecutor Victor Fitz in red flip-flops, in a light-hearted approach to a somber issue.

Men, women and children from all walks of life obtained pledges beforehand and joined them, bringing awareness to an epidemic of sexual assault and domestic violence in our communities while showing solidarity with the sexual and domestic violence prevention movement.

District Judge Stacey Rentfrow, a former DASAS board member during 10 years of volunteering whose court hears most family violence cases, said, “I fashion sentences by looking at protecting the victim, protecting the community and punishing the defendant, including incarceration. I try to make the victim whole — making sure restitution is paid, including medical expenses incurred because of an assault. Also, I look at should there be a no-contact order. Along with probation and oversight, I really like to see programs, which is why DASAS is so important. I also sit as a treatment judge for Sobriety Court and Adult Treatment Court, where I really see how programs and services change behavior into positive habits. It’s so important to have this program in our community. If I can order anger management, families are going to be in healthy relationships and safe environments.”

Fitz said, “We highly value DASAS,” which has a staff member who works fulltime in his office. His second jury trial when he became prosecutor 10 years ago was a father who repeatedly molested his daughter. “I’m finally free,” she said with a smile.

“I saw from day one how important DASAS’ staff is to getting just results in those cases. This is a great day with smiles and sunshine, but crimes often occur in the sinister night time when victims are alone and alcohol and other drugs are often involved. Great legislation has continued to come since ‘The Burning Bed’ (a 1984 movie starring the late Farrah Fawcett), which sparked a renaissance of protecting victims. Police officers are to inform victims of PPO (personal protection orders) rights. Here in Dowagiac not too long ago we had a situation in which the offender perpetrated a sexual assault in the downtown area. DASAS stepped up and helped that victim” while he received a “double-digit prison sentence.”

Last week, Fitz conducted a jury trial which underscored that “domestic violence is not always a guy against his girlfriend or wife.”

In Porter Township, a 42-year-old man harassing his parents “was convicted under one of the new stalking laws of the last decade, which we didn’t use to have. We had a ‘knock-and-wink’ policy where the police officer would come to the door, then move on. Those days are gone. If you go to a house to beat somebody up, that’s a felony.

“For another example, there was the case down in Edwardsburg where an ex-husband went to her house in the dead of winter, entered without permission and raped her repeatedly at gunpoint. Thirty-three percent of women killed nationwide are killed by a domestic partner. It’s a very real and serious matter. She was able to flee literally without any clothes on into the freezing weather. Law enforcement was able to get her to safety after a 20-hour standoff without any further harm to him or other citizens. He’s serving 16 years in prison.”

Fitz said the Legislature in April passed a law which allows old spouse abuse convictions to be expunged from records if offenders stay clean — or restored to enhance sentences.

Grinnewald said, “We’re here to raise awareness for domestic and sexual abuse. Statistics show us that every two minutes, a woman is raped in the United States and domestically assaulted every nine seconds. That’s way too much. We deal with it way too much here in town. We need to get the community aware and get them talking. It’s very easy for us as law enforcement and people who are not involved to step in to a situation and say, ‘Tell us what happened and be very candid and open’ about the most degrading, terrible thing a woman can go through. That’s not easy. Until we’re able to ‘Walk a Mile in Her Shoes’ we’re not able to understand what those individuals are going through.

“The men and women at the Dowagiac Police Department are very committed to making sure we handle these cases properly, that we investigate them completely and involve DASAS, the prosecutor’s office, the courts and anybody else we can to show these individuals there’s help and support out there. Hopefully, we’re sending a message to people who do these crimes that they don’t want to do it around here because they’re going to be in trouble. I’m proud to work closely with DASAS. Rita (Reed) and I have worked on different things together. It takes all of us to come together as a community to take care of this problem.”

DASAS has provided services to thousands of residents of Cass, St. Joseph and Van Buren counties for 29 years.

Based in Three Rivers, DASAS provides prevention programs, supportive counseling, comprehensive advocacy services, support groups, an emergency shelter program and emergency outreach programs.