Blue ribbons for child abuse awareness

Blue ribbons for child abuse awareness

Trees decorated at Tilden Rodgers Park to bring issue to the forefront

news@theeveningtimes.com

“Building community, building hope” was the call to action issued by Julie Brightside, Community Engagement Specialist with the Area 9 Division of Children and Family Services, last Tuesday afternoon in Tilden Rodgers Park.

Workers at the West Memphis office trekked up College Boulevard to the park and decorated a tree near the front pavilion with blue ribbons and contact information cards. “We tied 107 blue ribbons to this tree, representing the 107 Crittenden County children currently in foster care,” said Brightside. “We have got cards on there to let people know the child abuse hotline number, or to contact us if there they are interested in foster parenting of volunteering they can call.”

DCFS needs to build on its volunteer base for foster care in the county. 77 percent of county children in foster care are placed in homes outside the county.

“Right now in Crittenden County of those 107 children placed in foster care, 82 are placed outside the county in foster homes,” said Brightside. “Anyone with interest may call me at (870) 251-7569.”

Information is also available on the web at www.fosterarkansas.org.

“There is a lot of great information there and it will connect them to their DCFS community engagement specialist,” said Brightside.

DCFS Area 9 covers nine counties in the area: Independence, Jackson, Stone, Cleveland, Cross, Crittenden,

White, Woodruff and Poinsett. April is National Child Abuse Awareness and Prevention

month.

By John Rech