April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month, a time to remind all
adults and communities about the reality of child abuse, and
how we can work together to protect the children in our
community. Our local Child Abuse Council is partnering with
Prevent Child Abuse Georgia to raise public awareness about
how to prevent child
abuse before it
occurs. Our local
Child Abuse Council has several activities planned
throughout the month that you can be a part of.
Local Businesses and
Churches will be helping to spread the message by displaying
signs during the month.
You will also see our
Pinwheels for Prevention displayed on Parker Street (Hwy.
341) next to FNB South. These pinwheels represent the 84
substantiated cases of Child Abuse in Appling County for the
past year. We are asking everyone to wear blue on
Thursday, April 17th as a way to show your
support to preventing Child Abuse in our County.
We also have Child Abuse
Awareness Pins available to wear during the month of April.
If you need more information about how you can be a part of
any of these activities, or other activities throughout the
year, please call Amy Rediger, Executive Director, Prevent
Child Abuse Appling, at 367-8816.
If you would like to help
by making a donation, please mail it to: Appling Community
Connection - P.O. Box 425, Baxley, Ga. 31515. Please do your
part to protect our kids by joining these efforts in
whatever way possible.
Children count on the adults in their lives to keep them safe, here on
some suggestions on what each of us can do:
·
Be a
nurturing parent – Children need to know that they are
special, loved, and capable of following their dreams.
·
Be a friend
to a parent you know by offering to baby-sit, run an errand
or simply listen.
·
Develop
strong communication with the children you know.
·
Volunteer to
be a mentor to a child who needs you- call
367-8816 to find out
how.
·
Trust your
instincts, when you are concerned about an adult’s behavior
towards children, report it.
If
you know or suspect that a child is being abused, please
call our local DFCS office at 366-1010 and make an anonymous
report. For parenting tips and child safety information or
facts about child abuse, contact PCA Georgia’s statewide
HELPLINE at 1-800-CHILDREN or visit their website at
www.pcageorgia.org
