Amador County – The Sutter Creek City Council voted 5-0 Monday to allow 125 purple silhouettes to be placed at the Sutter Creek Gateway sign at the corner of Old Highway 49 and the new Bypass.

City Manager Sean Rabe said approval was given with direction to staff to work with Operation Care to address any safety concerns the Chief of Police and City Manager felt needed to be addressed.

Operation Care Interim Executive Director Tammie Crabtree requested permission in a Sept. 7 letter to Sutter Creek City Council, saying the Amador County program will place 150 Purple People around Amador County this year “to signify the victims in our county,” including 125 at Sutter Creek Gateway Park.

The Purple People would be placed in the park between Sept. 26 and Oct. 31. She said “October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month and Operation Care is dedicated to educating Amador County residents on how prevalent domestic violence is.”

Crabtree said the “Purple People Campaign” signifies “victims, in Amador County, who have experienced domestic violence.” Between July 2010 and the end of June 2011, Operation Care helped 232 victims of domestic violence in Amador County.

The non-profit Operation Care was founded in 1980 and offers support services, crisis intervention, and education to people in Amador County who have been victims of sexual assault and domestic violence.

Crabtree said the Purple People Campaign was her idea. It spun off from the national “Silent Witness” campaign that puts glass silhouettes at hospitals for people who died from of domestic violence. She spun it off to be localized to represent Amador County numbers, with the purple color chosen.

This is the fourth year of the Purple People Campaign. Crabtree said she was brainstorming for a campaign idea and came up with the visual. “It got people wondering and we have gotten a lot of feedback.” She said it has been effective because people are becoming more familiar with the Purple People and what they signify. “They are coming to our website, the Facebook page, and even our office and people are understanding what they stand for.”

Crabtree was appointed Operation Care’s interim executive director on July 28. She has been at Operation Care since 2007, as deputy director.

Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.