How does your contribution help our organization?
The South Carolina Victim Assistance Network (SCVAN) plays a central role in coordinating agencies involved in victim and witness services across the state. Through strategic collaboration, public outreach, advocacy, and direct support, SCVAN strengthens the statewide response to crime victims. The organization sponsors specialized training and public events, and administers five grant-funded programs that deliver essential services and resources to individuals impacted by crime. These contributions help fund both direct services for victims and broader initiatives that enhance the overall victim assistance infrastructure.
SCVAN programs provide the following services to South Carolina crime victims:
Emergency Funds
Legal services (including culturally and linguistically competent legal services and referrals for foreign-born crime victims)
Information, resources and education
Referrals to criminal justice, health and social service providers
Support for Sexual Assault / Forensic Nurse Examiners and Sexual Assault Response Teams
Advocacy within the criminal justice system
Training and technical assistance for victim service providers, criminal justice professionals and related service providers
Annual Victims’ Rights Week Conference
SCVAN's staff is available to provide presentations to educate the public about crime and its impact on citizens, or to talk with you if you are a victim of crime.
Make a Lasting Impact with an IRA Gift
If you have a traditional IRA, the IRS requires you to begin taking Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) by April 1 of the year after you turn 73 (or 72 if you reached that age before 2023). These withdrawals are generally taxable as income.
But there’s a meaningful way to use those funds to change lives. If you’re 70½ or older, you can make a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD)—a direct transfer from your IRA to a qualified nonprofit like the South Carolina Victim Assistance Network (SCVAN).
A QCD can satisfy your annual RMD while excluding the donated amount from your taxable income. That means you can support victims of violent crime across South Carolina and potentially reduce your tax burden at the same time.
Your gift provides immediate help—funding crisis response, advocacy, and programs that bring hope and healing to survivors who need it most.
To qualify for this tax benefit, your IRA custodian must send the funds directly to SCVAN.
Consider making an IRA charitable gift today. Together, we can ensure that victims are never left to face their journey alone.