Child Abuse Awareness Month.

For those who don't know it, April is Child Abuse Awareness and Sexual Assault Prevention Month.

It would be remiss of us not to bring this up on our blog, as one of Dove's programs is the domestic violence program. Domestic violence and child abuse very often go hand-in-hand, as do domestic violence and sexual assault. They are issues that people tend not to talk about.

But if we don't talk about them, if we don't educate ourselves, if we don't look toward solutions, the issues will remain, and the victims will continue to be scarred by the forced silence.

In 2010, there were 26,442 victims of child abuse and neglect reported in the state of Illinois.

As of February 29, 2012, for the year 2012, Dove Inc. has served 57 children who were either witnesses to, or victims of domestic violence.

If you want to help, Dove has a domestic violence training scheduled to beginning Monday, April 30th. Participants must be registered by noon on April 24th. Please call and ask for Bart Blakey for more information, at 217-428-6616.

For more information on child abuse, please contact the Macon County Child Advocacy Center. For more information on sexual assault, please contact Growing Strong Sexual Assault Center.

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