Will County’s Men Who Cook returns to aid Children’s Advocacy Center

Come out to Will County’s 13th “Men Who Cook” fundraiser Oct. 21 and perhaps meet a new member of the Children’s Advocacy Center team.

That member is Krypto, a small golden retriever mix who is “cute as heck,” Will County State’s Attorney James W. Glasgow said.

Lorraine Guerrero Neumayer, the center’s senior trauma therapist, is Krypto’s handler.

Krypto won’t serve as event emcee – that’s Jan Quillman’s role, said Lisa Morel Las, the center’s executive director. But if Krypto’s present, he might help greet attendees when they arrive at the Joliet Junior College Weitendorf Agricultural Education Center in Joliet for a night of good food and plenty of fun.

“And he might be doing some sample tasting,” Glasgow said.

Thirty professional and amateur cooks will prepare 500 small portions of their specialties off-site, even paying for their own ingredients at this all-you-can-eat event, Morel Las said.

Attendees can sample 2 ounces of food at a time from any of the four amateur cook categories – appetizer, side dish, entrée and dessert – as well as dishes from the professional chef category.

The format is perfect for encouraging plenty of fun conversation, Glasgow said, but he isn’t cooking for the event.

“I’m greeting everyone as they come in,” Glasgow said. “And then I’m going around and sampling all the food.”

All proceeds from “Men Who Cook” benefit the Will County Children’s Advocacy Center, which Glasgow’s office established in 1995.

What is the Advocacy Center?

The Will County Children’s Advocacy Center serves children who’ve experienced severe physical abuse, sexual abuse, commercial exploitation, and neglect and exposure to violence.

Morel Las said the center helps more than 700 new children each year.

“We are the only provider of front-line sexual abuse and severe physical abuse and investigation in Will County,” Morel Las said in 2022. “So every single case of severe physical abuse and sexual abuse, sexual exploitation and violent crimes all comes through the Will County Children’s Advocacy Center.”

Funds raised from Men Who Cook – the only fundraiser the advocacy center hosts – helps with funding gaps between federal and state grants and the cost of the center’s programs, which cover about 75% of costs, Morel Las said.

The center also receives funds from United Way of Will County and, more recently, assistance from the Will County Board, she said.

“We’re grateful to the Will County Board for supporting us the last three to four years,” Morel Las said. “But it doesn’t cover everything.”

The center is the sole provider of child forensic interviews for all law enforcement jurisdictions in Will County, as well as the local Department of Children and Family Services, Illinois State Police and the FBI upon request, according to the center’s website.

We are the only provider of front-line sexual abuse and severe physical abuse and investigation in Will County. So every single case of severe physical abuse and sexual abuse, sexual exploitation and violent crimes all comes through the Will County Children’s Advocacy Center.”

—  Lisa Morel Las, Will County Children's Advocacy Center executive director

Glasgow called the children’s advocacy center “the most indispensable tool we have in law enforcement.”

“[Forensic interview] has to be done by a highly trained forensic interviewer in a neutral, nonsuggestive environment with our multidisciplinary team observing to make it a complete interview,” he said.

The center also provides forensic medical exams, advocacy services, child pornography and exploitation victim services, the Paws-4-Kids pet therapy program, and trauma-informed therapy.

[ Will County expands therapy dog team to comfort crime victims ]

The importance of trauma-informed therapy

Glasgow recalled a teen girl who, years ago, was thrown from a car by her boyfriend. It was the same girl who was sexually abused when she was very young. Her abuser was sent to prison, Glasgow said.

But her self-esteem was “very damaged,” or she would never let a “violent man harm her in that fashion,” Glasgow said. That’s “living proof” that the counseling families receive through the center after the abuse is extremely important.

The girl received no follow-up services after her abuse because Will County had no such services to offer at the time, Glasgow said.

“I won the case. That was my job as prosecutor,” Glasgow said. “But I’m not a counselor, and there was no one.”

IF YOU GO

WHAT: Men Who Cook

WHEN: 6 to 9 p.m. Oct. 21

WHERE: Joliet Junior College Weitendorf Agricultural Education Center, 17840 W. Laraway Road, Joliet,

ETC: Split-the-pot, gift basket raffle, cash bar (wine, beer, spirits, pop and water), kids activities, music by the JIB Brothers Band

TICKETS: $40 each, $75 per couple and $10 for ages 6 to 12. Age 5 and younger are free. Buy tickets on the Men Who Cook website.

INFORMATION: menwhocook.info