April is Child Abuse Prevention Month

As a part of National Child Abuse Prevention Month, the University of Florida Levin College of Law’s Family Law Society and the Alachua County Child Abuse Prevention Task Force sponsored the annual Winds of Change.

Silver pinwheels dot the front lawn of the North Florida Regional Medical Center. With 2,030 of them revolving constantly in the wind, the lawn is an oversized optical illusion.

About 25 people placed the pinwheels on the lawn facing Newberry Avenue to spread awareness about the prevalence of child maltreatment in Alachua County.

“There is one pinwheel for each [substantiated] case of child abuse in Alachua County,” said Cynthia Winters, president of the Family Law Society. “Last year there were only 1,984 and this year there are 2,030.

"It is definitely a growing problem.”

April is Child Abuse Prevention Month across the nation, and springing up in our community are pinwheel gardens, planted as part of Prevent Child Abuse Florida’s Winds of Change Campaign. We can prevent child abuse and neglect by increasing knowledge of healthy child development and encourage our communities to provide safe, nurturing experiences for children. As part of the Winds of Change campaign, the Department of Children and Families is distributing resource guides on healthy child development to parents, child advocates and parent educators.

Eugenia Thomas, former president of the Florida PTA and a retired teacher once said, “Children need all the arms of protection we can provide.” Those arms of protection are our arms. We have to become involved to keep children safe whether as a parent, a relative, a neighbor or active community member.

We can prevent child abuse by forging bonds with families, friends and our neighbors. Getting to know your neighbors makes your community safer and provides individuals and families with support. Families feel safer and less stressed when they know support is nearby and they are not alone. Offer to be that support for your neighbor and friends.

Be active in the community – as a coach, a mentor, a tutor, a job coach, a volunteer. Support local organizations working to help families. Research shows that local programs and activities that support children and parents learning and having fun together, helps strengthen families and reduces the likelihood of child abuse and neglect.

Of course, some families face bigger challenges posed by economic disasters, domestic violence and substance abuse, but change for even the most troubled parent comes with connections to caring people and programs. And, at times, children have to rely on the eyes and ears of protective adults to make a call to the state abuse Hotline to guarantee intervention and safety. For those children and their caregivers, community resources need to be in place too, to prevent repeats of past mistakes and poorer outcomes.

Learn more about what you can to prevent child abuse at these websites: locally, at the Partnership for Strong Families, www.pfsf.org/capmonth and statewide website for Prevent Child Abuse Florida, www.ounce.org/cappacket.

The Winds of Change Campaign comes to life when we make commitments to our communities and neighborhoods to build strong, supportive environments allowing all children to grow into healthy, productive and caring adults.

Ester S. Tibbs

Circuit Administrator

Department of Children and Families

Gainesville