April is Child Abuse Awareness Month. Of the my r iad of things I get to do as County Judge, one of the most special events so far has been to read my proclamation in support of Child Abuse Awareness on the lawn of the Courthouse. Children who are the victims of abuse, endangerment and neglect are often overlooked by our fast-paced society, but they shouldn’t be.
As I said in my proclamation, “child abuse and neglect affect both the current and future quality of life of a community,” and, “all children deserve to have the safe, stable, nurturing homes and communities they need to foster their healthy growth and development.”
We all are responsible to make sure that happens. Through our partnerships among citizens, human service agencies, schools, faith communities, health care providers, civic organizations, law enforcement agencies and the business community; we must all play a part in securing our most valuable, and vulnerable assets – children.
On the grounds of the cour thouse, we placed almost two hundred pinwheels. One pinwheel for each child who was placed in foster care or was a victim of child abuse in 2022. If you have not seen them yet, I recommend you go by sometime this week while they are still there. It is a very poignant visual of just what that number looks like.
The four agencies that we have in Milam County who deal with this are the Milam County CPS Board, CASA of Milam County, the Children’s Advocacy Center of Central Texas and A Place of Hope. All four of these nonprofi t agencies work to represent the children of Milam County, to provide the social support, impart the knowledge of child development and provide the concrete resources the community needs to ensure all children grow to their full potential.
Children are our future, they are our promise, and they are the gifts that God has blessed us with. As the parents of eight children and the grandparents of two, my wife and I are truly blessed with a large, sometimes loud, loving, blended family that makes every day a special day that God has given us. Children truly are a blessing and while April is Child Abuse Awareness month, this should be a priority for us all, every day of every month.
As I have said since taking office, the safety and security of Milam County and its citizens should always be the most important thing to County Government. As your County Judge, I can assure you that this is my highest priority as well. As such, these children who are our most valuable assets, should always come first.
Please consider donating either some of your time or money to these fine organizations as they always need our help. For contact information check out these organizations on their Facebook pages or call our office at 254-697-7000 for contact information.
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