By Tammy Daniels
iBerkshires Staff
12:15AM / Monday, April 27, 2009
Natalie Smith, 8, minds 2-year-old Diego Marin and her brother, Joseph Batho, 4, at the 'Step Up for Prevention' event at City Hall. |
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The sun was beating down on 115 pairs of little shoes arrayed along the steps on Friday, their toes pointing away from City Hall and toward the few dozen people watching from the sidewalk.
The shoes represented the average number of children confirmed as abused or neglected each month in Berkshire County during 2007, the latest year of which data is available. The number of shoes is 38 higher than last year's "Step Up for Prevention" ceremony, held to raise awareness of child abuse.
"They are pointing toward you with a silent plea to do more to prevent this tragedy," said Bonnie McFarlane, deputy director of the Children's Trust Fund. McFarlane was joined CTF agency representatives and local dignitaries who called for support of children and families and the work being done to prevent abuse. "[The shoes] are symbols; they put faces on the issue. ... it truly lets us know that each and every shoe represents a person, a young and valuable person."
They represented, said state Sen. Benjamin B. Downing, D-Pittsfield, "a dream deferred by an act of violence."
It will require the increased cooperation of faith communities, businesses, government, law enforcement, schools, parents and community organizations to support families and prevent child abuse, said McFarlane.
The event was a bookend to April's Child Abuse Prevention Month; Mayor James M. Ruberto read a proclamation recognizing the month in Pittsfield as he did three weeks ago at the presentation of the Gerard D. Downing Service to Children Award.
District Attorney David F. Capeless and Bonnie McFarlane of the Children's Trust Fund. |
Three Berkshire County towns — Adams, North Adams and Pittsfield — are among the top five municipalities in the state with high reporting rates of child abuse. Massachusetts has the third highest rate for reported cases, twice the national average.
It's a topic most people don't want to know about, said Berkshire District Attorney David F. Capeless. But the community can't ignore the problem; in fact, outreach efforts and the work of the Sexual Assault Investigation Network, or SAIN team, are seeing some success.
Capeless noted that the statistics reflect the high rate of reporting, which reflects growning awareness of a problem that is robbing Berkshire County's children of their innocence.
Some 1,384 confirmed cases of child abuse and neglected were substantiated in 2007. The Children's Trust Fund works to prevent abuse by strengthening and nurturing families through supportive agencies, such as Child Care of the Berkshires, which oversees a number of family and educational programs.
Parent Liudmyla "Luda" Polotai, a newcomer from Ukraine, said one program, Northern Berkshire Family Net, has provided an important support network for her young family. Polotai, who is studying to become an elementary school teacher, said the program has been especially helpful in giving her young son and daughter a chance to play with their peers and learn English, since the family speaks Russian at home.
Scarlet Patti Marin and Renee Batho, who offers child care through Child Care of the Berkshires, and their children were among the crowd along the sidewalk.
Marin was disappointed more people weren't there and that the event hadn't really been promoted by the media. "This is very important for kids and families," she said.
The economic downturn will only add to the stress on families, said Anne Nemetz-Carlson, executive director of Child Care of the Berkshires, at a time when governmental cuts will affect preventive programs.
"Parents have to have hope that they can support their families," she said. "This is our call to action — no one child deserves to be abused or neglected."
