Posted 11:39 pm Monday, August 30, 2010
Children’s Advocacy Center Works To Help Abuse Victims
By BRIAN PEARSON
Managing Editor
The single, retirement-age man knew that taking three young grandchildren under his roof would present struggles and financial hardships, but he also knew they no longer could live with their abusive, drug-addled parents.
He and the children found themselves inside the friendly walls of the Children’s Advocacy Center of Smith County, which, through therapy and other assistance, is helping them with their daily lives and to prepare for upcoming court proceedings.
The Children’s Advocacy Center of Smith County, a United Way agency, works with young victims of physical and sexual abuse.
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Managing Editor
The single, retirement-age man knew that taking three young grandchildren under his roof would present struggles and financial hardships, but he also knew they no longer could live with their abusive, drug-addled parents.
He and the children found themselves inside the friendly walls of the Children’s Advocacy Center of Smith County, which, through therapy and other assistance, is helping them with their daily lives and to prepare for upcoming court proceedings.
The Children’s Advocacy Center of Smith County, a United Way agency, works with young victims of physical and sexual abuse.
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The center galvanizes the services of law enforcement and Child Protective Services, prosecutors, therapists, volunteers and medical personnel in a safe, nurturing place where the victims tell their stories only once.
Since 1996, the center has coordinated and investigated more than 5,300 cases and provided services for more than 7,500 children, with counseling for an additional 1,000, according to the agency’s website.
Jennifer Yoder, the center’s development coordinator, said the agency has seen an increasing workload recently, with the hardened economy creating stress on home fronts and leading to more abused children.
Ms. Yoder said Smith County’s child-abuse rate tops nationwide figures. An estimated 1 in 3 girls and 1 in 5 boys are physically or sexually abused in Smith County, compared to 1 in 4 girls and 1 in 6 boys nationwide, she said.
“What makes a person cause abuse?” Ms. Yoder said. “The economy is hard. There is a lot of stress at home.”
Once a child becomes a witness in an abuse case, she said, the center serves as a place for the story to be told for all investigative parties involved.
“That way, when the child is brave enough to stand up and make an outcry of abuse, or even if it’s a small child that’s not old enough, they can come to one location,” she said. “This keeps the child from going to the CPS office, the police station, the district attorney’s office and various agencies and having to keep repeating their story over and over again. We bring everybody together in this one location.”
The children, accompanied by their primary caregivers, come to the center through CPS or law enforcement. An interview is videotaped, and the tape becomes the district attorney’s property for use in multiple investigative aspects.
“Only the child and the protective caregiver are allowed on our site,” Ms. Yoder emphasized. “It might be a parent. It might be a grandparent. It might be a family friend.
“The perpetrator is never allowed on our site.”
The children and caregivers are set up for a series of therapy sessions. The series can last for as long as two years.
“The child and the protective caregiver become very familiar and very attached to their therapist,” Ms. Yoder said. “They do a lot of bonding. They talk about what’s going on in their lives today, not just reliving the abuse.”
The center also prepares children for their court appearances, which can be difficult considering that 90 percent of the children know their abusers.
On the eve of the court appearance, center staffers take the children to courtrooms, where they are told what to expect and where everyone will sit.
The center’s history dates back to 1994, when a community group sought to launch a Smith County child-abuse program. A steering committee drew members from law enforcement, Child Protective Services, Smith County District Attorney’s Office, the medical and mental-health industries and East Texas Crisis Center
That led to the formation of the Child Abuse Intervention Program, which fell under East Texas Crisis Center umbrella.
The IRS in January 1999 issued the Children’s Advocacy Center its 501(c)(3) letter, and the center became a separate entity from the East Texas Crisis Center.
An anonymous donor in 2003 provided the funds for the 8,250-square-foot center at 2210 Frankston Highway in Tyler, but center officials said an expansion is needed, with a fundraising campaign under way.
The Tyler Morning Telegraph was the presenting sponsor, with Brookshire’s as the diamond sponsor, of the 11th-annual Bids for Kids online auction in June. The auction, through the newspaper and eBay, offered more than 90 items for bidding.
The Fore the Kids golf tournament, held in April at the Cascades and Hollytree country clubs, is another fundraiser that benefits the center.
The center also raises money through the annual Holiday Home Tour, which will be from 4 to 9 p.m. Dec. 5, with a complimentary shuttle service. Tickets are $50
Ms. Yoder said Smith County’s child-abuse rate tops nationwide figures. An estimated 1 in 3 girls and 1 in 5 boys are physically or sexually abused in Smith County, compared to 1 in 4 girls and 1 in 6 boys nationwide, she said.
“What makes a person cause abuse?” Ms. Yoder said. “The economy is hard. There is a lot of stress at home.”
Once a child becomes a witness in an abuse case, she said, the center serves as a place for the story to be told for all investigative parties involved.
“That way, when the child is brave enough to stand up and make an outcry of abuse, or even if it’s a small child that’s not old enough, they can come to one location,” she said. “This keeps the child from going to the CPS office, the police station, the district attorney’s office and various agencies and having to keep repeating their story over and over again. We bring everybody together in this one location.”
The children, accompanied by their primary caregivers, come to the center through CPS or law enforcement. An interview is videotaped, and the tape becomes the district attorney’s property for use in multiple investigative aspects.
“Only the child and the protective caregiver are allowed on our site,” Ms. Yoder emphasized. “It might be a parent. It might be a grandparent. It might be a family friend.
“The perpetrator is never allowed on our site.”
The children and caregivers are set up for a series of therapy sessions. The series can last for as long as two years.
“The child and the protective caregiver become very familiar and very attached to their therapist,” Ms. Yoder said. “They do a lot of bonding. They talk about what’s going on in their lives today, not just reliving the abuse.”
The center also prepares children for their court appearances, which can be difficult considering that 90 percent of the children know their abusers.
On the eve of the court appearance, center staffers take the children to courtrooms, where they are told what to expect and where everyone will sit.
The center’s history dates back to 1994, when a community group sought to launch a Smith County child-abuse program. A steering committee drew members from law enforcement, Child Protective Services, Smith County District Attorney’s Office, the medical and mental-health industries and East Texas Crisis Center
That led to the formation of the Child Abuse Intervention Program, which fell under East Texas Crisis Center umbrella.
The IRS in January 1999 issued the Children’s Advocacy Center its 501(c)(3) letter, and the center became a separate entity from the East Texas Crisis Center.
An anonymous donor in 2003 provided the funds for the 8,250-square-foot center at 2210 Frankston Highway in Tyler, but center officials said an expansion is needed, with a fundraising campaign under way.
The Tyler Morning Telegraph was the presenting sponsor, with Brookshire’s as the diamond sponsor, of the 11th-annual Bids for Kids online auction in June. The auction, through the newspaper and eBay, offered more than 90 items for bidding.
The Fore the Kids golf tournament, held in April at the Cascades and Hollytree country clubs, is another fundraiser that benefits the center.
The center also raises money through the annual Holiday Home Tour, which will be from 4 to 9 p.m. Dec. 5, with a complimentary shuttle service. Tickets are $50
