Catholic Charities awarded $10,000 grant

Catholic Charities of Jackson, Lenawee and Hillsdale Counties has been awarded a grant of $10,000 from the Jackson Community Foundation’s Unrestricted Community Needs Endowment Fund. “The grant will be used for the Jackson County Child Advocacy Center,” Sue Lewis, executive director, announced. “The Child Advocacy Center provides comprehensive services to children who have been sexually or severely physically abused,” Lewis said. “The Jackson Community Foundation has been one of our founding and key partners. Their support has helped to establish a permanent home for the center, hire staff and pursue national accreditation, which ensures long-term sustainability.”The prosecutor’s office in Jackson County recognized that these vulnerable children were being re-traumatized every time they had to tell their story to a different person. In 2012, all the agencies involved from intervention to treatment were brought together to pilot a Child Advocacy Center for Jackson County. Through the collaboration of several community organizations, this child-friendly center developed a coordinated effort to help children and their non-offending family members deal with the trauma of sexual abuse. “The grant from the Jackson Community Foundation has given the center additional resources to train law enforcement and agency staff on best practices in handling abuse cases. This collaborative approach follows a protocol that better serves the needs of the community, improving the lives of abused children and helping them to heal.” Lewis said. “We served 137 children in 2013, 43 children in the first quarter of 2014, and that number will grow as our capacity increases.”