Stewards Of Children® Training To Be Offered In Niagara During Child Abuse Awareness Month

Program integrates stories of sexual abuse survivors with the perspective

of professionals who interface daily with the problem of sexual abuse

One in 10 children will be sexually abused by the time they turn 18 with 90 percent of them abused by someone they know.  You can make a difference in protecting children by registering for one of the six Stewards of Children® trainings being held in Niagara during the month of April.

The programs will be offered free charge by the Child Advocacy Center of Niagara, a service of Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center, with the support of the Niagara Area Foundation.

Stewards of Children is an evidence-informed child sexual abuse prevention, recognition, and intervention training.  More than one million people around the world have taken this training. Sessions are open to anyone interested in protecting children from sexual abuse and may be of particular interest to youth serving organizations, parents, educators, childcare providers and faith centers.

The training will be led by Education and Outreach Coordinator Jacqueline Pritchard of the Child Advocacy Center of Niagara, an authorized Darkness to Light-Stewards of Children facilitator.

Scheduled training dates are

• April 5, 11 a.m.-1:30 p.m., Lockport Public Library
• April 5, 2-4:30 p.m., Lockport Public Library
• April 12, 2:30-5 p.m., Niagara Falls Public Library
• April 12, 5:30-8 p.m., Niagara Falls Public Library
• April 20, 2:30-5 p.m., DeGraff Community Room, 139 Division St., North Tonawanda
• April 20, 5:30-8 p.m., DeGraff Community Room, 139 Division St., North Tonawanda

Registration is required. Register online using the Classes & Events page at nfmmc.org or call the Child Advocacy Center of Niagara at (716) 285-0045.

About the Child Advocacy Center of Niagara:  The Child Advocacy Center, a service of Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center, is a child-friendly facility designed to coordinate a multidiscipli-nary response to reports of physical and sexual child abuse of children as well as cases where a child has witnessed domestic violence.  The Center is a Darkness to Light affiliate, authorized to facilitate Stewards of Children training within the Niagara County community.

Website:       www.CACofNiagara.org

Facebook:     CACofNiagara

About Darkness to Light: Founded in 2000, Darkness to Light (D2L) is a nonprofit organization committed to empowering people to prevent child sexual abuse.  We are guided by our vision to create a world where child sexual abuse does not exist.  We believe protecting children is an adult responsibility and that education is critical for prevention efforts, as well as a catalyst for larger cultural change.  Our immediate focus is to make child sexual abuse prevention national priority.

Website:       www.D2L.org

Twitter:         Darkness2Light

Facebook       DarknesstoLight