SISTER LAKES — Sister Lakes Brewing Company’s signature craft beers will not be the only things on tap at the local hotspot during a special evening later this month.

The business, located at 92500 County Road 690, Dowagiac, will be partnering with area support agency Domestic and Sexual Abuse Services for a special “Dine for Dollars” fundraiser, which will be from 4 to 9 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 13. The brewery staff will donate 20 percent of the total of all customers’ bills (excluding alcohol) during that time period to DASAS, which the organization will use to help fund the numerous services it provides to victims of domestic and sexual abuse living in Cass, Van Buren and St. Joseph counties.

Staff and board members with the agency will be at the business throughout the evening, and will share more information about its mission and services with interested diners.

The Sister Lakes company, opened in 2016, is the latest restaurant to volunteer to support DASAS. Over the past several years, a number of local eateries in Dowagiac and Cassopolis have hosted similar fundraisers to raise money for its operations, said DASAS Executive Director Kimberly Kramer.

“This is our first time working with Sister Lakes Brewing Company,” Kramer said. “We are pleased to be branching out to a different pocket of the county, so that we may reach some new people.”

The agency, founded in 1984 as the Domestic Assault Shelter Coalition, relies heavily on private donations to help fund its operations, Kramer said. In addition to providing an emergency shelter in Three Rivers for families escaping domestic or sexual abuse, the nonprofit offers counseling groups and educational programs to residents in the tri-county area.

In addition to the upcoming fundraiser at Sister Lakes Brewing Company, the agency recently launched a year-end donation drive that is intended to raise $7,500 for its flagship “Healthy Relationships” education program. The program, currently aimed at local high school students, teaches teenagers more about the subjects of domestic and sexual violence, including how to spot abusive behavior and how to help friends who are being victimized by their partner.

While DASAS has offered the program to schools for more than a decade, its potential impact on local students has been dampened due to monetary restraints.

“Prevention is extremely vital, but there is not a lot of funding for it,” Kramer said. “We are hoping to build additional financial support, so that we can continue to do these programs for local schools.”

Kramer is looking to use donations from the fundraising campaign to help pay for a part-time employee, who will teach the four-day class sessions and coordinate dates with local school districts, she said.

“We are hoping to visit each school in our area at least once a year, so that every student will have participated in the program at some point in high school,” she said.

In the future, the director would like to see the ���Healthy Relationships” program expand to area middle and elementary schools, she said.

People interested in contributing to DASAS may contact the agency at (269) 279-5122, or may visit its website, dasasmi.org.