It takes a village to raise a child, but it takes a team to protect one.
Pike County Attorney Paul Howard said those words during the Child Abuse Prevention Proclamation Ceremony held at the Pikeville City Park on April 5.
Howard was one of several guest speakers at the ceremony who spoke about the teamwork between all the agencies who take on the critical task of protecting children.
According to Pike County Judge-Executive Ray Jones, in 2021, more than 500,000 children in the U.S. were found to be victims of child abuse or neglect.
Pike County officials, law enforcement agencies and child advocates joined together in Pikeville City Park on April 5 for the Child Abuse Prevention Proclamation Ceremony. The event included special guest singers from Model City Head Start, as well as key speakers from local law enforcement agencies, CASA, Judi’s Place for Kids and the Division of Protection and Permanency. Event-goers were encouraged to take blue pinwheels to display at their homes or businesses to help spread awareness for the cause.
Of that number, Jones said, 76 percent of children were victims of neglect; 16 percent of children were victims of physical abuse; 10 percent of children were victims of sexual abuse; and 0.2 percent of children were victims of sex trafficking.
An estimated 1,820 children in the U.S. died as a result of childhood abuse and neglect in 2021, Jones said.
He went on to say homicide is the second leading cause of death in children under one.
In Kentucky, Jones said, which ranks fifth in the nation for number of child abuse and neglect cases reported, 14,963 cases of child abuse or neglect were substantiated in 2021.
Kristyn Densmore-Smith, CASA executive director, said in 2022, Pike County had 326 substantiated cases of child abuse and neglect.
These numbers do not account for children who were not reported, Smith said.
Pike Family Court Judge Kent Varney echoed Howard’s statement of teamwork being key to protecting children.
Varney commended local law enforcement agencies, the commonwealth’s and county attorneys, social workers, children’s advocates, CASA workers, guardian ad-litems and Judi’s Place workers for their ability to work together for the betterment of children.
Many victims of child abuse are generational victims of child abuse and neglect, Varney said.
“They’re victims themselves, the children are, but their parents were in the system,” Varney said. “The way you prevent that is, you have to start breaking the generational ties.”
Varney said all the local agencies work together to figure out how to put children in the best situation so they can have a happy and healthy future.
Kentucky State Police Public Affairs Officer Trooper Michael Coleman said although it does take a team to protect a child, it just takes one person to save a child’s life.
Coleman said while he recognizes the courageous efforts of those who work to protect children everyday, he also wants to encourage “the one” to take the necessary steps to report suspected abuse.
“It takes one person to save a child’s life just by calling in and reporting it,” said Coleman. “If you see something you think is off, call it in.”
Howard joined Coleman in issuing a call to action.
Howard said he would like to challenge everyone to join the team and reach out to spread awareness.