Winter-Spring 2017 Winter-Spring 2016-17 one page up | Page 7

Preventing Child Sexual Abuse is an Adult Responsibility
Darkness to Light believes that adults should be taking proactive steps to protect children from this significant
risk. It is unrealistic to think that a young child can take responsibility for fending off sexual advances by an adult.
Adults are responsible for the safety of children. Adults are the ones who need to prevent, recognize and react
responsibly to child sexual abuse. Yet, the statistics clearly show that adults aren’t shouldering this responsibility.
Darkness to Light believes that adults just don’t know how.
Think About It
It's unrealistic to expect a six-year-old to fend off sexual advances from an adult relative. Children often cannot
recognize sexual advances for what they are, and have been taught to “mind” adults who are authority figures.
What Family Connection is Doing
Stewards of Children is a 2-hour class that teaches how to recognize the child who may be experiencing abuse
and how to address the child to assess the situation. There are five individuals from Fannin County working
through Family Connection that are facilitators for this training. Trainings will be available for recreation coach-
es and staff, school faculty and staff, faith-based organizations, and anyone else who works with children in our
community. If you work in an organization that has contact with children and would like to have the Darkness 2
Light Stewards of Children 2-hour class taught for you or your staff, please contact Family Connection. We’ll be
happy to provide this training. Our goal is to teach this awareness training to 5% of the population in Fannin
County. When we do this, we’ll start to solve the problem of childhood sexual abuse.
Mark Your Calendar!
Red Cross Blood Drive
The American Red Cross will be at Family Connection
for Blood Drives on the following dates:
August 16—Noon til 5
Family Connection partnered with Memorial Hospi-
tal to bring free mammogram services to women
with no insurance or who are underinsured. The
Mammogram Bus was on site during December
2016 and March 2017.
November 16—Noon til 5
Connections, Winter/Spring 2016-17 Page 7