For 40 years, the Northeast Arkansas Family Crisis Center has been providing shelter, advocacy and an extensive range of support services to survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault and human trafficking. To raise money for the next 40 years and beyond, the nonprofit organization will hold its annual Cajun Fest later this month.

Meeting a Growing Need

The Family Crisis Center (FCC) was founded in 1986 when a local task force was formed to address domestic violence and sexual assault in Northeast Arkansas. Over four decades, the center’s purpose and its part-time staff have developed into a 24/7 organization with a full team of advocates.

“Over the years, FCC has continued to evolve as the needs of survivors have changed,” said Executive Director Casey Kidd. “An emergency shelter was established, services expanded beyond shelter into advocacy and support, and mental health therapy became part of our continuum of care. Our sexual assault program grew into what is now our Sexual Assault Support Services Center, where survivors can receive forensic exams on site, and services were expanded to include survivors of human trafficking.”

While the FCC is located in Jonesboro, its reach extends throughout seven counties in Northeast Arkansas. The center provides a 24/7 crisis hotline and emergency shelter, victim and legal advocacy, mental health therapy, sexual assault services and forensic exams, human trafficking services, financial and housing assistance, prevention and education, and connections to other community resources.

“Our mission is to assist those who have experienced domestic or sexual violence as they move from victimization to empowerment,” said Kidd. “Unfortunately, the need for those services continues to grow. Behind every hotline call or service number is a person who may be experiencing one of the most frightening and uncertain moments of their life. Our job is to make sure they don’t have to navigate that moment alone.”

In 2025, the Family Crisis Center answered 2,640 hotline calls, provided 5,681 services, completed 751 therapy sessions and provided 36 forensic exams. Those numbers are looking to be even greater for 2026.

“Those numbers are important, but I always want people to remember that each number represents a person,” said Kidd. “A hotline call isn’t just a call, it may be someone asking for help for the first time. A shelter night means someone had a safe place to sleep. A forensic exam represents a survivor who was able to receive compassionate care following a sexual assault.

“That’s why we pay attention to the numbers—not simply because they demonstrate growth, but because they tell us how many people are trusting us to be there when they need help.”

Longtime volunteer and board member Kila Montgomery has been helping FCC fulfill its mission since 2017.

“The most surprising thing I have learned through my time serving on the Family Crisis Center board is that domestic violence and sexual assault happen to women and families across all backgrounds,” said Montgomery. “This is not a problem just happening in low-income or disadvantaged areas; this is happening in all neighborhoods across Northeast Arkansas. 

“I am incredibly proud of the growth of the Family Crisis Center, particularly this year with the opening of the new Sexual Assault Services Center, which is a safe place for women to go for post-assault treatment and care. As we continue to grow our fundraising efforts, I am excited to see all the ways the Family Crisis Center will continue expanding its services and impact in the years ahead.”

For those who have been able to witness and support the center’s growth over the past decade, the ability to help survivors with more aspects of their trauma recovery has been a primary focus.

“I have seen survivors of sexual assault go from having to sit in ERs with no expert nurses, to survivors having a dedicated therapeutic space with trained sexual assault nurses and advocates,” said Beth Murff, FCC board president. “I have seen justice prevail in our community and lives changed. I have seen children with a safe space for the first time. I have seen thousands of community members educated about domestic violence and resources, as well as healthcare providers trained on sexual assault survivors and trauma informed care. 

“It is a gift to be a small part of the remarkable journey of these survivors and all they overcome.”

Leading the FCC

Although Kidd graduated from Arkansas State University with an MBA following a bachelor’s degree in corporate finance, she has instead pursued a career in a field that she says is her true calling and passion with the support of her husband, Justin, and two young sons.

“My career actually began in the corporate and higher education worlds, but I found my passion in nonprofit work,” said Kidd, who took the position with FCC in August 2024. “Over the past decade, much of my career has centered around serving vulnerable populations, addressing homelessness and housing instability, and strengthening the systems and organizations that support people during some of the most difficult moments of their lives. Before joining Family Crisis Center, I worked in leadership roles with Crowley’s Ridge Development Council, the Arkansas Balance of State Continuum of Care and United Way of Northeast Arkansas.”

Kidd said that the position with FCC offered an opportunity to serve people in a very direct and meaningful way. 

“What drew me to FCC was the mission, but also the potential I saw in the organization,” she said. “There was already an incredible foundation built by the people who came before me, a dedicated staff and a community that truly cared about the work. I saw an opportunity to build on that foundation, strengthen and expand services, increase community awareness and make sure survivors throughout Northeast Arkansas knew that when they needed help, someone would be there.”

Kidd’s work with FCC has only made her passion for the nonprofit’s mission grow. She says that being able to lead an organization that has served this community for 40 years is something she does not take lightly.

“I don’t think I could have anticipated how deeply connected I would become to this mission,” said Kidd. “You see very quickly that this work isn’t simply about providing a service. 

“Sometimes it is answering the phone at the exact moment someone has decided to ask for help. Sometimes it is giving someone and their children a safe place to sleep. Sometimes it is sitting beside a sexual assault survivor during a forensic exam or walking beside someone through the court system. And sometimes it is helping someone move into a home of their own and begin an entirely new chapter. Those moments remind me every day why this organization matters.”

A Personal Mission

Murff has a personal reason for wanting to do all that she can to support the FCC as a place where survivors can be believed, supported and given choices.

“Like many folks doing this work, I have a personal story of trauma as a young person,” said Murff. “I have had an underlying desire to use that specific trauma to help others and had not found the right time or place. In 2017, I became involved as a volunteer with the Family Crisis Center as they added the sexual assault services.  Being involved with FCC allows me to serve those who have been traumatized by sexual assault and domestic abuse and support them as they live their lives as survivors.”

When Murff was a 20-year-old old nursing student in Memphis, she became a survivor of a sexual assault. The individual broke into her college apartment, then physically and sexually assaulted her.  Murff was given the choice to go to the ER or the Rape Crisis Center, and she chose the latter.  

“I remember the time in that center to be peaceful, quiet, therapeutic and the only ‘positive’ moment in those memories,” said Murff. “He was never caught.  I told myself that he must have had a terrible life, if he was capable of that, and he deserved forgiveness.  In my mind, he was also likely living a risky life and might not even be alive.”

Then in 2023, following the passing of her father and while Murff was studying to pass the sexual assault nurse examiner certification exam, she realized that victims have a right to know if there was a DNA match on their sexual assault kit.   

“I called the cold case division, and the case was re-opened,” she said. “Turned out, my kit was tested in 2016, and due to an error, it was not pursued.  In 2025, after the case was reopened and multiple meetings with Memphis police officers, prosecutors and advocates, the perpetrator was arrested and has been in the Memphis jail awaiting trial. This work matters.

“Oct. 2 is my 60th birthday. If you’d have told me that after 40 years I would be a SANE (Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner) nurse, the perpetrator would be in jail and I would be able to be a small part of such remarkable work with survivors, I would not have ever believed (it). What a blessed life.”

Forty Years of Crisis Care

“What I think is especially meaningful about our 40th anniversary is that our growth hasn’t meant moving away from the reason FCC was created,” said Kidd. “The services have expanded, the organization has grown and the needs have changed, but 40 years later, the heart of the mission remains the same: when someone needs safety and support, we want to be there.

“We want our 40th anniversary to be more than simply recognizing a number. It is an opportunity to recognize the people who built this organization, the staff and volunteers who have carried the mission forward, the community that has supported it and, most importantly, the survivors who have trusted FCC over the past four decades.”

FCC’s impact in Jonesboro has been significant, and Kidd has seen firsthand the safety, dignity, choice and hope that have come about as a result of the center’s services.

“I’ve watched our advocates help survivors obtain orders of protection, navigate the court system, find housing, secure identification and employment, enroll in benefits and rebuild financial stability,” she said. “I’ve watched families arrive at our shelter carrying very little and later move into homes of their own.

“I’ve also seen our community’s response to sexual assault change. The opening of our stand-alone Sexual Assault Support Services Center has allowed survivors to receive forensic exams and advocacy in a private, trauma-informed setting outside of a hospital environment. That was a vision of this organization for years, and seeing it become a reality has been one of the most significant developments in our recent history.”

The executive director says the upcoming Cajun Fest fundraiser gives FCC an opportunity to celebrate the center’s history and growth while also looking toward what the next 40 years can become.

“Throughout this milestone year, we want to tell more of FCC’s story—where we began, how services have evolved and why the community’s continued investment in this work is so important,” said Kidd. “While 40 years is certainly something to celebrate, it is also a reminder that the FCC’s work isn’t finished.”

Supporting FCC with Cajun Fest

Cajun Fest is FCC’s largest fundraiser of the year, and the funds raised directly support the services it provides to survivors. The annual event will take place on Oct. 16 from 6-10 p.m. at The Gardens at Harmony. 

“This year, we are making Cajun Fest bigger than ever,” said Montgomery, who is chairing the 2026 event. “We are growing it from a backyard dinner into a full, fun and casual fundraising event, complete with a live auction, donation drive and DJ.

“Most importantly, guests will have the opportunity to enjoy a great evening with friends while learning more about the Family Crisis Center and the important work being done throughout our community. We are excited about the growth of the event and the opportunity to connect even more people with the Family Crisis Center mission.”

A highlight of the event will be the Cajun food provided by Big Easy Catering. Cocktail hour will feature a jazz trio, followed by a DJ for dancing after the program.

“I absolutely love Cajun food, so I am definitely excited about the food, but what I enjoy most is the fellowship with friends and our community,” said Montgomery. “The more people I can connect with the Family Crisis Center mission, the greater the impact we can have together for women and families throughout Northeast Arkansas. … 

“Every dollar we raise through Cajun Fest goes directly back into Family Crisis Center services. Each dollar helps the FCC team provide shelter or transportation for a family in need, lead a counseling session, support a client during a legal appointment and provide the many other services that survivors need as they work toward safety and stability. The work being done by this team is absolutely vital, and Cajun Fest helps make that work possible.”

Kidd says that $500 can help support a survivor’s transition to safety and stability; $1,000 can provide a security deposit and first month’s rent; $2,500 can provide approximately one month of shelter for a survivor and child; and $3,500 can provide approximately 40 free mental health therapy sessions.

“When someone purchases a Cajun Fest ticket, sponsors the event, buys a raffle ticket or participates in an auction, they aren’t simply supporting an event, they are helping ensure that when someone calls us tomorrow, we can say, ‘Yes, we can help,’” said Kidd. “… This year’s event is particularly meaningful because we’re celebrating FCC’s 40th anniversary. For four decades, this community has made our work possible. Cajun Fest is both a celebration of that history and an investment in what comes next.”

For more information about Cajun Fest or the Family Crisis Center, located at 519 W. Washington Ave., call (870) 972-9575. For 24/7 emergency help, call (870) 933-9449.