Blue pinwheels, ribbons focus on child abuse prevention

Soon after the Black Belt Regional Child Advocacy Center opened in January 2020, director Charlotte Webb began making plans to observe Child Abuse Awareness Month in April.

COVID-19 changed all that.

While the pandemic continues to put a damper on most public functions, Webb is determined to mark Child Abuse Awareness Month this year and to let the community know what impact the BBRCAC is having in the region.

The center provides services to children who are victims of sexual abuse or serious physical abuse and support to their families. It also brings together the professionals who lead the investigation and prosecution of these cases.

“All children deserve a happy and safe childhood,” said Webb.

The center has worked with 55 children, most from Marengo County, since it opened. Of them, 65 percent are female; 35 percent, male.

Child Abuse Awareness Month in Marengo County will begin Thursday, April 1, with a proclamation delivered by Demopolis Mayor Woody Collins. The noon event will be held at the Demopolis Public Square.

Webb and BBRCAC volunteers will be out early placing blue and silver pinwheels all around the park for people to enjoy and take with them. The pinwheel “has become the national symbol for child abuse prevention,” said Webb.

Pinwheels also will decorate the lawn at the Marengo County Courthouse in Linden, one pinwheel for each indicated child abuse report, Webb said.

April 3 will be Wear Blue Day in honor of the month. Blue T-shirts sporting the pinwheel logo will be for sale at the center on North Strawberry Street. Businesses and individuals are being encouraged to purchase and display blue ribbons to raise awareness of the issue and support the BBRCAC. Each ribbon may be ordered by April 5 from First United Methodist Church for $20. All proceeds will benefit the center.

The BBRCAC was the only such center in the state to remain open during the entire pandemic, Webb said. “If the child has been abused, what’s COVID got to do with it?”, she asked.

The center has been fortunate this year to have the services of a three-year-old professionally trained Facility Dog. Wendell III is with the Covington County District Attorney’s Office. He provides compassion, comfort and courage to the center’s clients.

Webb has been amazed at the way the dog eases clients’ fears and allows the children to answer questions of the forensic interviewer.

“It’s just phenomenal,” she said. “If I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn’t have believed it.”

Many people still don’t know about the center or the work it does, said the director, but in the 15 months since its opening, more are becoming aware. The center even gets calls from individuals wanting counseling for their children. The center, however, only provides counseling to those who are referred by the county DHR or law enforcement, Webb said.

Sumter and Greene counties are included in the BBRCAC service area. Officials in those counties are beginning to understand the advantage of having the center and are referring more clients, she continued.

With an increasing client base, the BBRCAC always needs funding. J.R. Rivas in December purchased the center’s building and donated it to BBRCAC, which ended the need to pay rent.

“But we have bills just like everybody,” including salaries for its four employees and utilities, said Webb.

The Marengo County Commission has provided support since the beginning. Webb is working to get help from Sumter and Greene counties as well as cities and towns across the service area and from corporate sponsors.

“What we need is recurring donations,” she said.