DANIELS, WV (LOOTPRESS) – Just For Kids, Inc. recently hosted its twelfth annual Golf Classic tournament at Glade Springs’ Woodhaven Course.
The annual tournament is a key fundraising event for the child advocacy center, and this year hosted twenty-six teams to raise an estimated $80,000 toward Just For Kids’ mission of reducing trauma and raising awareness with regard to sexual abuse to children in Southern West Virginia.
“The golfers have such a good time playing and knowing they are helping out a great organization,” said Just For Kids Board President Marcy Nolan. “I am continually impressed by the interested and support that the golving community has in raising the needed funds to continue the essential services that Just For Kids provides in the community.”
At this year’s tournament, Just For Kids, Inc. Executive Director Scott Miller took time to speak to LOOTPRESS about the tournament itself, and how the core purpose of the event transcends any sort of financial objective.
“It’s certainly a giant fundraiser for us, but it’s also a way to talk about the work and embed the values of caring for kids in a community because it’s up to adults to make the difference for kids,” said Miller.
“People don’t want to talk about child abuse, really. But it’s important, and the more the community gets it, the more likely it will be helped in some way. So that’s a big piece of why we do this.”
The event featured a variety of activities available to those in attendance, including opportunities to win discounts at course’s Golf Shop, along with an array of prizes awarded through tournament raffle. Refreshments were also made available along with information and resources on how to help prevent child abuse and address trauma.
If you suspect that a child is being abused, be sure to report it to the Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-352-6513. It takes courage to speak up.
More about Just For Kids, Inc:
“Last year,  Just For Kids Child Advocacy Center:
- Interviewed 286 children who were alleged victims of child sexual abuse, physical abuse or witness to violent crimes.
- 80% of those children disclosed actual abuse that they suffered. As hard as it is to imagine that so many children are being abused,
- only 1 in 10 children tell, so there are likely
- Over 3000 children in Raleigh and Fayette Counties who were criminally abused last year.
- Our four forensic interviewers get called by either child protective services or law enforcement to arrange an interview for a child when allegations arise. Â
- They conduct an average of 25 interviews a month. These children have been sexually or criminally abused, witnessed a violent crime, or experience severe neglect.
- 73%Â of the children we serve are under 12 years old.
As a nationally accredited child advocacy center, our four main goals are to:
- Work as a team with law enforcement, child protective services and the prosecutor’s office to provide a friendly environment in which to conduct forensic interviews of children who have been subject to criminal child abuse;
- Provide a family advocate to work with the child and family;
- Offer counseling to those children who disclose abuse; and,
- Provide prevention and awareness training in the communities we serve. Our new Outreach Advocate would love to meet and talk with you about opportunities to change the conversation about child sexual abuse.
Offices are located in Beckley at, Trudy’s House on N. Kanawha Street and on Jones Avenue in Oak Hill. Just For Kids also provides the Stewards of Children program, a nationally recognized abuse prevention program for adults in the community as well as prevention outreach training for children in school settings. For more information about Just For Kids, contact us at 304-255-4834 or visit our website at www.jfkwv.com.”
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