A Mobile-based nonprofit is working to make the upcoming holiday season a little brighter for women and children rebuilding their lives after escaping domestic abuse, organizing a weekend fundraiser aimed at supporting a local transitional shelter.
Cassandra Rodgers, who leads the nonprofit Worthy of Life, planned a Saturday fundraiser at Light of Empowerment on South Beltline Service Road, where volunteers spent two hours selling Mary Kay cosmetics to raise money for the cause. For every qualifying order of $25 or more, Worthy of Life receives a portion of the proceeds, and the group also sold raffle tickets for a Mary Kay gift basket valued at more than $100 to boost the total.
Rodgers said her goal was to raise at least $500 to help feed women staying at the Sybil H. Smith Family Village, a transitional housing program for homeless women and their children operated by the Dumas Wesley Community Center. The shelter provides a safe place for families to stabilize their lives, and Rodgers wanted the holiday meal effort to cover either Thanksgiving or Christmas, depending on how details worked out with center staff.
For Rodgers, the cause is personal. She has spoken publicly about a family member who once lived at the same type of shelter and was later killed by an estranged partner, a loss that has shaped her commitment to supporting other women trying to escape dangerous relationships. She has said she understands firsthand what it means for a parent and child to depend on a shelter for safety, and that experience continues to drive her nonprofit’s work in the Mobile community.
Worthy of Life accepts donations year-round through any Hancock Bank branch or by mail at the group’s Daphne post office box, giving supporters multiple ways to contribute beyond the weekend fundraiser. Rodgers has framed the organization’s mission simply: to let survivors and grieving family members alike know that support exists and that the community cares about their wellbeing.
Beyond the fundraiser itself, Worthy of Life also organizes a regular support group for people who have lost loved ones to violence, offering a space for processing grief and connecting with others who have experienced similar loss. The group’s most recent gathering was scheduled for later in the month at Light of Empowerment, continuing a series of meetings the nonprofit holds to support both survivors and families affected by domestic violence.
The fundraiser adds to a growing network of grassroots efforts across the Mobile area aimed at supporting shelters and transitional housing programs, particularly as the holiday season places additional strain on nonprofits trying to stretch limited budgets to cover extra meals, gifts and services for the families they serve.