Well known to many of us in Cork, Mary Crilly is the Co-Founder and CEO of the Sexual Violence Centre Cork (SVCC).

Formerly known as the Cork Rape Crisis Service, the SVCC was founded on International Women’s Day in 1983, and has two main aims:

To work towards the elimination of sexual violence in society.

To provide the highest quality of services to victims of sexual violence.

The centre provides a range of confidential and free-of-charge supports and services to the survivors of rape, sexual assault, and child sexual abuse. A dedicated and active campaigner, last year Mary was honoured with the Freedom of Cork in recognition of her work.

Thanks to Mary’s tireless grit and determination to establish and sustain the centre, the SVCC has helped tens of thousands of people who suffered rape, sexual violence, domestic violence, and other  horrific experiences over the years in Cork.

Mary was awarded the Freedom of Cork City in June 2022 and enrolled in the Roll of Freedom “in recognition of her unstinting support and advocacy for survivors of sexual violence over four decades”

We look forward to Mary speaking to us at the Spirit of Mother Jones Festival 2023 as she will share her experiences of 40 years of work in Cork city, talk about how far we have come, and what we can all do towards eliminating sexual violence.

Mary will speak at the Dance Cork Firkin Crane on Friday evening 28th July at 7:00 pm. All are welcome to come along.