Dan Ferguson | Langley Times

Rick Cahpman

Gene Simmons of KISS gave a $100,000 boost to the Gala of Hope fundraiser for The Centre for Child Development and Sophie’s Place Child and Youth Advocacy Centre held at the Newlands Golf and Country Club in Langley on Saturday night.

In addition to the donation, Simmons also auctioned off a ‘blade’ guitar.

A total of $280,000 was raised by the gala, the centre said.

Simmons was there with his wife, Canadian model and actress Shannon Tweed, to show support for their daughter, Sophie Tweed-Simmons, who lent her name to the Surrey facility.

Since 2012, Sophie’s Place has assisted abused children up to the age of 18 by providing a safe space where they can talk about their experience of physical, mental or sexual abuse with trained staff and law enforcement professionals.

In a statement issued by the centre, Tweed-Simmons said the team at Sophie’s Place conducted more than 200 interviews with abused children over the past year.

“It’s really important that kids have a place to go where they can be taken seriously, and where they can express what’s happened to them in a safe environment,” Tweed-Simmons said.

The Centre also operates satellite offices in Langley that provides a number of professional services for children with special needs including: physiotherapy, communication therapy, occupational therapy, and services for children and families affected by Fetal Alcohol Syndrome Disorder.

The Langley location is also home to the centre’s fundraising arm, the Child Development Foundation of British Columbia.

For more information, visit www.the-centre.org or phone 604-584-1361.