Pat's Place History
Who is Pat?
Pat's Place Child Advocacy Center is named in loving memory of Patricia "Pat" Wolfe, a tremendous child advocate for the Charlotte community who passed away on May 7, 2000. As a former juvenile court counselor, social worker, and case advocate, Pat was well-known for her passion in assisting children in need. She often used her own finances to help "her kids" buy food, clothing, access to daycare, and any other personal need. After more than 30 years of working with youth throughout Mecklenburg County, it was not uncommon for grown adults to call Pat or stop in to visit because they were so appreciative of the compassion she had shown for them as children. Prior to her sudden passing, Pat was involved in the planning process for opening an advocacy center in Charlotte that would assist children specifically involved in sexual abuse. Today, that center is known as Pat's Place in honor of a woman who gave her all to ensure the safety and well-being of the children in our community. The idea for Pat's Place Child Advocacy Center was incubated at the Council for Children (now Council for Children's Rights) to address an acute problem faced by child victims of abuse in Charlotte. All too often, children with the courage to talk about the abuse they had experienced were expected to undergo repeated questioning about the most traumatic event in their lives. Pat's Place was established to ensure that all the services a child and family needs (medical examinations, forensic interviewing, advocacy support) could occur in one location – a safe, nurturing, child-friendly environment, at no cost to a child's family. Since opening with one staff member in 2005, Pat's Place has experienced significant program growth and now employs 20 professionals with wide ranging expertise. The incredible support and generosity of community stakeholders have helped Pat's Place achieve great things during its brief history:- 2002 The Duke Endowment awards a two-year grant to Council for Children to support salary and program operations
- 2004 Community Child Sexual Abuse Guidelines adopted by 11 partner agencies to ensure a cooperative, multidisciplinary approach to investigation. Pat's Place officially incorporated as a 501(c)3 organization in August 2004.
- 2005 Pat's Place serves its first child with one full time staff member. Carolinas Medical Center Levine Children's Hospital Pediatric Resource Center co-locates with Pat's Place in freestanding facility located at 1819 East Boulevard.
- 2007 Organization receives full accreditation through National Children's Alliance
- 2011 Relocates to 901 East Blvd with five staff members. Expanded service provision in order to serve even more children
- 2014 Launches Prevention and Education program which provides child abuse education and prevention training to more than 2,000 adults each year
- 2015 Pat's Place expands to add on-site individual, group, and family therapy services to ensure children heal emotionally from the abuse they have experienced
- 2016 Pat's Place selected as lead agency for Mecklenburg County's Project No Rest Human Trafficking Task Force. Significantly expands in-house clinical services programming by adding two additional therapists in October 2016.
