No Images? Click here Baltimore Child Abuse CenterNOVEMBER 2018 NEWSLETTER: THANKFULThankfulAdam Rosenberg, Executive Director Last Thursday, I shared a potluck Thanksgiving lunch in the family waiting room with our interviewer Cassandra, some detectives from Homicide, and a 10-year-old boy here for therapy who couldn’t wait to get thirds on chicken, turkey, gravy, and I think tamales (it’s a pot luck after all). The day before, I played Connect Four with an 8-year-old awaiting a medical exam. Last month, I sat with our child life supervisor Amanda and played Headbandz with two sisters here for an interview. BCAC is teeming with life and excitement like we’ve never had before. The family room at BCAC has always been filled with joyous voices from children, apprehensive at first, but quickly overcome with the urge to just play. But a few recent developments have brought a new level of life to our center. Over the last year we have realized a long held goal to be an ongoing safe place for children and families when they’ve experienced trauma. With the addition of four therapists to our team, we’ve got a full day of appointments of children who return to BCAC to get help here. Vera and Kelly greet them with a huge smile and hello before they go off to meet Julia, Katie, Yuvi, or Abbie. And invariably they play with the dollhouse (thanks to my Mom who insisted we take it when she moved) or sit down to engage in a game with our expanding child life and volunteer team (Click here to see our open position.) Adding to the joy is, of course, Manny, who recently celebrated his 1st BCAC anniversary. BCAC’s family room is a destination that is warm, inviting, and a critical part of our strategy to help kids heal. Such a warm waiting room is not just nice to have, it’s critical to being able to call ourselves an accredited children’s advocacy center. Research shows that use of warm, child-friendly spaces helps lead to a more thorough and child-oriented response to sexual abuse reports; families have a more positive experience when compared to sites that don’t meet those standards. In fact, children, teens, and parents find greater satisfaction of care when being seen in a supportive child-focused environment, and they often cite that the best part of the experience was a caring staff, helpful communication, and clinical play experiences in a comfortable and private setting that is physically and psychologically safe for victims and their non-offending family members. Beyond the butterflies, the games, and the smiles, there’s actually some science behind how we do what we do in the family room. But to those kids who managed to win at Connect Four, had a chance to interact with Manny, or got a third helping of lunch, they’re just happy to be kids again. And for that, I am grateful. Warmest regards, Next week: Giving Tuesday!Next Tuesday, November 27, is Giving Tuesday! We hope you will share your love for BCAC by making a donation, starting a Facebook fundraiser (just go to our Facebook page and look for the “Fundraisers” section near the top of the page and click on “Create” -- Facebook will be matching the first $7 million in donations starting at 8am on the 27th, so your contributions could be doubled!), or sharing our posts on social media on the 27th. And if you are in Baltimore, please join us on the 27th at R. House for a special Giving Tuesday event! For the second year in a row, BCAC and Araminta Freedom Initiative are partnering with R. House to share our missions in the Remington neighborhood! On November 27th, R. House is generously giving our organizations: Manny & all of us at BCAC wish you & yours a happy Thanksgiving! Thank you, From the Family Advocacy Team!By Denielle Randal The Family Advocacy Team would like to express our gratitude for the generosity and amazing support that all of our donors and volunteers have provided over the past few years. We serve over 800 families a year. Some of the services we provide to families include intervention, education, treatment and advocacy. This year, we were excited—with your help—to establish our Operations Resource Room, which provides us with a space to store items our families may need such as toiletries, clothes, book bags, school supplies, hygiene supplies, shoes, and so much more. When a client walks in our doors, they usually need much more than just the medical, forensic interview, and mental health services BCAC provides. A child can come in hungry—we have a snack ready for them. A mother may have left a bad situation so quickly she needs a change of clothes, or a pair of shoes, or diapers for her baby—we’re there for her! Now, with our Operations Resource Room stocked and ready, we know we can keep on hand items our families need. The families we serve have been extremely grateful. It warms our hearts knowing that we have made their day, during what is a very difficult time, and that having resources readily available helps them through this traumatic experience. These extra kindnesses are something that they will always remember and we are grateful to be able to provide them. Your contributions and volunteer hours translate into hope. Hope for children and families to start that path toward getting back to a normal life. With your help, we are able to meet their needs in ever-expanding ways. We wanted to let you know that your generosity and commitment to serve and support truly leaves a lasting impression on our clients. Our mission has always been to help families build on their strengths to change what is into what can be. With your support we can continue to keep this momentum going. On behalf of the entire Family Advocacy Team and the children and families we serve, thank you. Sincerely, |