Words and Image by Jenny Lynn Davis
During a regular meeting of the Jasper City Council on Tuesday, April 2, Mayor David O’Mary issued a proclamation recognizing the month of April as Child Abuse Prevention Month in support of the Alabama Department of Child Abuse and Neglect Prevention and the Children’s Trust Fund.
The proclamation highlights that preventing child abuse and neglect is a community problem that requires involvement from people throughout the community and mentions that child maltreatment often occurs when people are under stress and lack community resources and coping mechanisms. The proclamation also states that the majority of child abuse cases stem from conditions that can be prevented in a supportive community and emphasizes that reducing child abuse and neglect involves ensuring families have the support they need to raise children in a healthy environment, suggesting that everyone should be involved in supporting families to raise their children in a safe and nurturing environment.
The proclamation also notes that effective child abuse prevention programs are successful because of partnerships among social service organizations, schools, faith communities, civic organizations, and law enforcement agencies.
Present to receive the proclamation were representatives from the Jasper Area Family Services Center, The Walker County Children’s Policy Council, HARTT of Walker County, and The Children’s Advocacy Center of Walker County.
Johnny Sudberry, Executive Director of the Children’s Advocacy Center, said, “On behalf of the 600,000 children who are abused every year and the five children who die every day as a result of child abuse, we appreciate this proclamation by the City of Jasper. You have always stood behind efforts for the children in our community, and we certainly appreciate this.” WL
Learn more about each organization represented at the issuing of this proclamation by visiting the following links: The Children’s Advocacy Center of Walker County, Jasper Area Family Services Center, The Walker County Children’s Policy Council, HARTT of Walker County.
