SPRINGDALE, Ark. — April is child abuse prevention and awareness month, and our local children’s advocacy centers are using it as a time to bring awareness to the important work they do all year long.
You may have seen pinwheels across our area representing April as child abuse awareness and prevention month as pinwheels signify the innocence of childhood.
“When you look at a pinwheel, many of us will have a memory of childhood. We want to paint that picture of innocence, and purity as what childhood should look like. Each of those pinwheels represents a child that has been brave and courageous enough to tell their story,” said Natalie Tibbs.
Tibbs is the executive director of the Children’s Advocacy Center of Benton County. She says so far this year they’ve helped more than 300 children and families. Since they started in 2000, 13,000 children have walked through their doors.
“CAC brings advocates, forensic interviewers, counseling sessions, as well as medical examinations all to one location. So a child can go here and receive all of the services that they need to talk about what happened, and receive healing from that experience,” said Tibbs.
Emily Rappe Fisher is the development director of the Children’s Safety Center of Washington County. In 2022, they saw 842 kids— a 33% increase from 2021.
“It's happening more frequently, but also a lot of kids are talking more. I think a lot of that has to do with the awareness campaigns that we do as a center,” said Fisher.
Fisher says another part of what they do is go into schools to educate teachers, counselors, and kids about child abuse. Each handprint on the wall of the center represents a child who has come to the center.
“We have thousands all over our walls... They're a beacon of hope to the kids that come here when they realize that they're not alone. In this process, they see the handprints and realize this does happen to other kids just like them, and they can get on that path to healing just like them,” she said.
The Children’s Safety Center has been inside the center for nonprofits in Springdale for 26 years, but come September they will be moving into a brand-new building with three times the space on Gene George Boulevard. They are almost 90% of the way to their goal of raising $15 million for their new building.
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