Santa Barbara Rescue Mission’s 24th annual fundraiser Bayou Down Under will take on an Australian theme, 2 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 4 at Sandpiper Golf Club.

The event will honor Janet Rowse with the Léni Fé Bland Award for her dedication to youth addiction prevention.

Rowse is the co-founder/executive director of SafeLaunch, a Santa Barbara-based organization committed to preventing youth substance use.

The Women’s Auxiliary organizes the fundraiser, which will include a dinner on the Grand Lawn presented by Pure Joy Catering. Guests will also be able to bid online for gifts from a large silent auction.

Funds raised allow the Rescue Mission to offer a successful 12-month residential drug and alcohol treatment program and provide emergency and transitional services for homeless guests.

Last year’s Bayou event raised more than $600,000 to assist people seeking shelter and recovery from drug and alcohol addiction. The mission has helped some 1,000 people achieve recovery in the last 28 years.
 
Rolf Geyling, Rescue Mission president, said, “Together, we are not only transforming the lives of individuals, but we’re also changing and saving entire families.

“Generations from now, people will be living in hope and freedom because of the Mission and our donors who make it possible.”

For more event information, visit www.sbrm.org/bayou25.

Established in 1965, Santa Barbara Rescue Mission, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, brings physical, emotional, educational, and spiritual resources to individuals and families in need.

For more, email Rebecca Weber, director of communications, at rweber@sbrm.org.