‘I STAND WITH KIDS’

First Witness Child Advocacy Center has been advocating and supporting our children for 25 years

BY TRACIE CLANAUGH

The distinct scent of color crayons, the sound of the binder clasps snapping and unsnapping, and the feeling of the crisp, fall air make for reminiscent childhood memories for most of us. As the memories come flooding back, we also start shifting from the hustle and bustle of tourist season, to the flurry of back-to-school planning. As parents, you want to be sure you have prepared your children to have the best possible start to a new year. You purchase new backpacks, shoes and supplies, you talk about bus safety and to be on their best behavior for their teachers.

It’s a little different for us here at First Witness Child Advocacy Center, which marks its 25th anniversary this year. Sure, we are preparing for your children, too. We are polishing up our classroom presentations and planning our presentation dates at the schools. But in actuality, we didn’t take a summer break.

The reality is, child abuse never takes a break. It happens when a family least expects it. Accordingly, September is significant for us as we prepare for “I Stand With Kids” month. This month serves as a time for us to help re-focus our communities on the importance of child abuse prevention and education.

“I Stand With Kids” month-long campaign serves as a way to engage the community, schools and parents around issues of child abuse in a positive and proactive way.

Child abuse education and prevention is severely underfunded. If we as a community don’t raise money to support education, the incidence of abuse will increase. “I Stand With Kids” campaign helps raise money throughout August and September through fundraising events and activities.

In August, we held the second annual Bike for Kids in Duluth. It didn’t matter if you had a motorcycle, car or pedal bike; the point was for the community to come together in unity to raise money for educational programming.

Throughout September, community members are encouraged to support First Witness efforts by purchasing a “Blue Kid,” which represent thousands of children abused in Minnesota each year. When you purchase a lawn figure, you are helping give children a safe place to talk about their abuse. And you are helping to spread awareness of child abuse and more importantly inspire prevention. The blue color symbolizes Child Abuse Awareness and Prevention. Individuals and businesses are encouraged to purchase a “Blue Kid,” ranging in price from $20-$50. All Sponsored Blue Kids figures will be displayed at the Valley Youth Center (Laura MacArthur School) on “I Stand with Kids Day,” Tuesday, Oct. 2. Ultimately, the fall fundraising and education efforts help provide money that supports the Safe and Strong Child© Program. First Witness staff deliver this training consistently in classroom presentations to children, parents and teachers. This gives both children and adults the education, tools and resources that are available to help children and families within our community. The program is extremely underfunded, which is why I Stand With Kids Month is so important.

Last school year, First Witness staff impacted our community by:

• Delivering prevention education to more than 3,152 kids within Duluth and surrounding area schools in grades preK-6 Delivering 34 community presentations to reach over 428 people within our community about ways we can work together keep kids safe.

About First Witness

First Witness Child Advocacy Center (CAC) is a safe, child-friendly place for victims of child sexual and physical abuse. Forensic interviewers work with a team of investigative professionals in response to allegations of abuse.

How To Start The Conversation About Body Safety With Your Child

It’s never too late or too early to start talking to kids about body safety. Often these conversations don’t have to be rehearsed; rather it’s as a caregiver being comfortable knowing how to respond to certain situations or using teachable moments that your child gives you to insert body safety messaging.

Let your child set boundaries for their body:

• Allow your child to decide how to say hello and goodbye to family and friends. If your child doesn’t want to hug or kiss, that is OK.

• If your child doesn’t like tickles or back rubs, teach them it is OK to say no to these touches from anyone, including adults.

• Speak up when you see inappropriate behavior between adults and children.

• Set and respect family boundaries. All members of the family have rights to privacy in dressing, bathing, sleeping and other personal activities. If anyone does not respect these rights, an adult should clearly enforce the family rules.

• Demonstrate boundaries by showing in your own life how to say “no.” Teach your children that their “no” will be respected, whether it’s in playing or tickling or hugging and kissing.

• Use the proper names of body parts. Just as you teach your children that a nose is a nose, they need to know what to call their genitals. This knowledge gives children the correct language for understanding their bodies, for asking questions and for telling about any behavior that could lead to sexual abuse.

• Be clear with adults and children about the difference between “OK touch” and inappropriate touch. For younger children, teach more concrete rules such as “talk with me if anyone — family, friend or anyone else — touches your private parts.” Also teach kids that it is unacceptable to use manipulation or control to touch someone else’s body.

Don’t feel like these conversations have to be a sit-down rehearsed conversation either. Our children gift us with moments to bring up body safety all the time.

Through our advocacy program, we believe every child deserves ongoing safety and opportunities to become stronger in the wake of abuse.

Since its inception, First Witness has been driven by innovation. We opened our doors as one of the first CACs in the nation. Our community recognized a need for a stronger response to child abuse and organized to meet it. Guided by the families we work with, we are always learning how to better serve our community. We accomplish this by identifying and strategizing for small and large-scale changes to bridge gaps. We share our model of comprehensive programing and making systems change through hosting and speaking at conferences and providing trainings across the nation.

Our dream is to create a fair and equitable systems response for families when their child has been abused. We want to build safety into all communities, to support both individual and community resilience to trauma. — MDT

Tracie Clanaugh is executive director of First Witness Child Advocacy Center. She wrote this for Moms & Dads Today.

For more information about how you can ‘Stand with Kids’ and support our communities response to child abuse, please contact First Witness at (218) 727-8353, visit us at firstwitness.org, or follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/firstwitness childadvocacycenter.

APPLY NOW FOR 2018-19

This is your opportunity to apply for enrollment for your child, Kindergarten-8th grade. Students applying for kindergarten must be five years old by September 1, 2018, and Minnesota residents.

To apply, visit www.duluthedison.org