Dear friends,
April is Child
Abuse Prevention Month and I always like to use it as a time to
remember why I became a social worker. As my duties have expanded
and I have taken on responsibilities that stretch across the whole
agency, I do not get to spend as much time on the heart and soul of
what we do: helping children and families.
In the early
1990s, while working in a real estate company with a finance degree,
I was fortunate enough to become a Big Sister to a foster child. She
captured my heart. From that point on, I was hooked on helping
abused and neglected children. I sought a master’s in social work
and I became a Children’s Services caseworker.
So, when April
rolls around each year and someone mentions it is Child Abuse
Prevention Month, I try to take a moment to reflect on the human
side of our business. I put aside the budget figures, the
administrative duties and the personnel issues and I think back to
my early days as a caseworker and how fantastic I felt when we could
make a positive difference in the life of a child.
Nationally,
approximately 1 million children are found to be victims of abuse
and neglect in a given year. More than 1,500 children die from abuse
each year. It takes more than $100 billion to respond to that abuse.
In Hamilton
County, there are more than 6,000 reports of abuse and neglect each
year. That is more than 6,000 children who need our help. I cannot
think of a more important job.
These statistics
are not acceptable. We all need to make this a high priority in this
community. Child abuse prevention is not just the job of our
Children’s Services division. It is the job of everyone in this
community.
We will join
several other community organizations on April 2 and plant more than
6,400 colorful pinwheels – each representing a report of child abuse
or neglect to Hamilton County’s 241-KIDS hotline – near the
Underground Railroad Freedom Center. The pinwheels, which depict the
innocence of a child, are a dramatic attempt to draw attention to
child abuse. Pinwheels for Prevention is part of Prevent Child Abuse
Ohio’s statewide campaign to promote awareness and prevention of
child abuse.
Please join us
for the event. We cannot win this battle by ourselves. Child abuse
prevention is everyone’s job.
Sincerely,
Moira
