Hundreds of attendees gathered Wednesday for the ribbon cutting of the $21 million Isnardi Foundation Building in Fresno. Photo by Ben Hensley

The Marjaree Mason Center celebrated the long anticipated grand opening of its new 37,680 square-foot Isnardi Foundation Building on Wednesday.

The facility in Northwest Fresno at Bullard and Del Mar avenues will serve survivors of domestic violence in Fresno County.

The project — a $21 million undertaking that will see the capacity of the center double  — was funded largely thanks to community and corporate donors. The center received a $3 million donation from the Isnardi Foundation in December 2023, securing the naming rights of the new building.

Several hundred people were in attendance at Wednesday’s event, which saw representatives from the City of Fresno and Fresno County Board of Supervisors, as well as campaign donors, project and community partners and construction partners.

Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer spoke at the event, thanking sponsors, donors and supporters. He also praised Marjaree Mason Center CEO Nicole Linder for her dedication to the project.

“This is definitely an incredible milestone in the ongoing fight against domestic violence in our community,” said Dyer, who served on the Marjaree Mason Center’s board of directors for ten years. “Domestic violence is one of the very reasons that I got into law enforcement – because of the desire to protect women, children and our seniors who oftentimes get taken advantage of in our community.” 

Last year, more than 7,800 domestic violence reports were taken by the Fresno Police Department, according to Dyer, with 60% of the victims under the age of 34 and 12% under 18.

Members of the Mason family were also in attendance on Wednesday, echoing the thanks from city officials and specifically thanking the employees at the Marjaree Mason Center.

The center was named for Marjaree Mason, who at age 36 in 1978 was murdered by an ex-boyfriend. The center was born in 1979 to fight domestic violence.

“It’s not going to leave until we step up and assist the problem, and that’s what this building is all about,” said Alfred Mason, the younger brother of Marjaree Mason. 

The building took significant time to remodel and modernize, being transformed into a physically and emotionally safe space. The center houses a 24/7 trauma-informed crisis drop-in center, non-residential survivor services, including a 24/7 hotline, individual counseling and group therapy, legal advocacy, children’s services and prevention and early intervention efforts.

The Marjaree Mason Center serves over 8,000 victims annually as the county’s only dedicated domestic violence assistance provider.