April is Child Abuse Prevention Awareness Month
Wear a blue jean jacket or other blue clothing to show support for Child Abuse Prevention.
In 1983 President Ronald Reagan issued a presidential proclamation designating April as Child Abuse Prevention Awareness Month to, “acknowledge the importance of families and communities working together to prevent child abuse.”
“Child abuse is preventable by strengthening families and fostering healthy development of children. A community that cares about early childhood development, parental support, and maternal mental health, for instance, will foster nurturing families and healthy children,” said Executive Director of Center for Family Strengthening Lisa Fraser.
The Center for Family Strengthening partners closely with Family Resource Center agencies as they connect to families in the community. The agencies are trained to recognize the absence of any one of five protective factors in a family, which may cause significant stress in the family and trigger potential abuse. The five protective factors are: parental resilience, social connection, knowledge of parenting and child development, concrete support in times of need, and children’s social and emotional development.
The center has established educational programs and services that strengthen the family and address these protective factors in an effort to get the family back on track and prevent abuse. To create the awareness of child abuse prevention in San Luis Obispo County, the center will kick off the month of April with the promotion of Wear Blue 4 Kids, starting April 3. The color blue symbolizes child abuse prevention. The center is offering an opportunity to win a free Starbucks carmel chocolate double frappuccino for you and each of your friends by posting a selfie with your blue jean jacket or attire on the center’s Facebook page and on Twitter, #wearblue4kids.
On April 11, The 37th Annual Children’s Day in the Plaza with Passport to the Arts will bring children and families to the Mission Plaza for a day of hands-on visual, literary and performing arts activities, at public engagement booths provided by community organizations and companies that provide learning opportunities to children, as well as spectacular youth performances. This year’s special partnership with Arts Obispo’s Passport to the Arts will allow children and families the opportunity to discover creativity, individuality, diversity and the arts while exploring community resources.
Over 2500 children and adults join us each year; San Luis Obispo County Child Care Planning Council is inviting you to be a part of this amazing event. For more information visit www.sanluischildcare.org/childrens-day-in-the-plaza.
On April 24, the center will hold the annual Child Abuse Prevention Academy at Cuesta College starting at 9 a.m. through noon. The public is invited. Pediatrician Nisha Abdul Cader, MD will be the guest speaker. Dr. Cader is the medical director for the Suspected Abuse Response Team, pediatric consultant for Martha’s Place Children’s Assessment Center and supervising physician at the Juvenile Service Center for the County of San Luis Obispo. She received the 2012 Hands on Hero Award for her dedication to the health and well-being of the youngest and most vulnerable residents of San Luis Obispo County.
Statistics on child abuse
In 2013, 679,000 children were victims of child abuse or neglect in the United States as reported by U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. 1,484 children died as a result of abuse. Officials in SLO County responded to over 2,240 reports of child abuse or neglect. 492 cases were substantiated.
To donate or learn more about Center for Family Strengthening go to www.cfsslo.org or call (805) 543-6216.
