Haven House Family Fun Fest Raises Funds for Rio Rancho Domestic Violence Shelter

The Scooby-Doo Mystery Machine rolled into Haynes Park on Saturday as Haven House's annual Family Fun Fest drew families, volunteers, and local organizations to Rio Rancho for a day of costumed characters, Easter egg hunts, and direct donations to Sandoval County's primary domestic violence shelter.

The March 28 event produced at least one headline contribution: The ABQ Giving Machine announced that its December fundraising campaign had generated nearly $30,000 in goods and services for Haven House. The donation was among several presented directly to the shelter during the festivities, and it illustrates how far the shelter's community partnerships stretch. For Haven House, in-kind goods such as clothing, toiletries, and household supplies carry the same operational weight as cash, equipping survivors arriving at the shelter with immediate necessities.

Ghostbusters, Star Wars characters, Spider-Man, and the Easter Bunny rounded out a lineup that kept children occupied while parents browsed booths staffed by local nonprofits and businesses. Bouncy houses and an Easter egg hunt filled out the family programming, and organizers used the afternoon to formally recognize the shelter's top volunteers, whose unpaid labor supports everything from direct client services to the fundraising logistics that make events like Saturday's possible.

Haven House serves as the county's principal resource for survivors of domestic violence, providing emergency shelter, counseling, legal advocacy, and assistance navigating stable housing. The Family Fun Fest serves a dual function: generating unrestricted funds that keep those services running and building public familiarity with what the shelter does for Sandoval County residents in crisis.

The strong turnout at Haynes Park positions Haven House to deepen donor relationships heading into the next fiscal year. Organizers said outreach and volunteer recruitment will continue in the weeks ahead, with the goal of converting Saturday's goodwill into recurring commitments before the momentum fades.