BECKLEY, WV (LOOTPRESS) – New River Gorge Regional Development Authority along with Forward Southern West Virginia have each contributed $10,000 to propel Project GRACE, an education and training campaign coordinated by Just for Kids Child Advocacy Center to counteract child exploitation.
Project GRACE – Gathered Response to Address Child Exploitation – is a new initiative which will assist frontline workers throughout the community in learning to identify and report exploitation of children and to expand response efforts with regard to victimized children throughout the local area.
“Project GRACE is modeled after a successful community initiative in Boston,” says Just for Kids Child Advocacy Center Executive Director, Dr. Deanee’ Johnson. “The project will target high-risk locations for training on identification and intervention. People who work at gas stations, convenience stores, hotels and other frontline customer service positions may be able to spot things that do not add up when they see adults and children together.”
Johnson says that the initiative, the first of its kind in the Mountain State, will also emphasize offering resources and services to address the needs of children identified in such situations.
“Customers of these establishments also need to be on high alert when spotting warning signs,” she says. “We will also focus on providing extended service to identified youth to better meet their needs.”
New River Gorge Regional Development Authority will be contributing funds for technical assistance to provide support in the respective areas of marketing and employee training. This will help in the sharing of information and in the education of frontline workers on the campaign, according to New River Gorge Regional Development Authority Executive Director, Jina Belcher.
“After learning that Project GRACE would identify frontline workers and assist with training them on how to spot child exploitation, we knew that supporting the business education and marketing of the program would be the ideal place for NRGRDA to invest,” Belcher says.
West Virginia non-profit organization, Forward Southern West Virginia will also be contributing funds which will be utilized to address priority needs with regard to the project. The collaboration came about after the organization reached out to Just for Kids to discuss how they could best contribute to the campaign.
“Forward Southern West Virginia reached out to Dr. Johnson to determine how we could help,” said Forward Southern West Virginia President, Bill Baker. “Just for Kids is a crucial partner in our community infrastructure. Forward Southern West Virginia’s mission is to support community-focused organizations in larger economic development efforts across the region and our board felt that an inaugural investment in Project GRACE was an ideal way to assist Just for Kids.”
Those interested in learning more about Project GRACE, including how to contribute, are encouraged to visit the Project GRACE website.
