Because the month of April is Child Abuse Prevention Month, this article will focus on what you can do in your own community to help prevent child abuse. Many times, in homes across America, stress precedes abuse to children. When a family is burdened and overwhelmed with financial difficulties, no help with child care, and a lack of resources, it can lead to the abuse of the children in the home. There is something that you can do.
One idea is to go through your house, during Spring cleaning, and gather together items that are in good condition, but that you no longer need or want. Those items can then be sold in a garage sale and the money donated to an agency that deals with child abuse, in your own community. Having a yard sale or garage sale can help you to get to know your neighbors better as well. Perhaps you can even consider holding a large sale, with donations coming from several families.
Another idea would be to gather toys, clothes, and stuffed animals that you no longer need or want and donate them to the same agency within your community. The items could be given to children and women staying in abuse shelters. Often times, when fleeing an abusive situation, the mother and children will leave their home with nothing but the clothes on their backs. Another idea would be to get together with family and friends, and have a car wash in your community. The funds can be donated to the abuse shelter to help with their costs. Summer is a perfect time to hold car washes and it can be a lot of fun.
You can also hold a block party, in your neighborhood, and invite all families living on your block to participate. Have games for the children and everyone bring a favorite dish to share with others. Doing this will give you a chance to meet your neighbors and their children. This will enable you to form a trust with the other families. Doing this might make the difference in a young child’s life. If one family is feeling stressed or overwhelmed, they would know they can turn to their neighbors for help. This will help to lighten the load for the family in need and help to prevent abuse towards the children.
If you are a mechanic, you can offer to help a single mother with children with necessary car repairs. If you like to bake, maybe you can consider baking items and holding a bake sale outside of the local grocery store. All funds can be donated to an agency that helps abused women and children. If you are a stay-at-home mother, you might consider taking the neighbors children to the park to play with your children and give the parents a time of rest. If you cut hair, you may want to consider offering free haircuts for a family nearby. There are so many ways that you can help. I hope that you will consider helping in any way that you can. It could make a world of difference to the children in your neighborhood, as well as their parents.
7 comments on What Can You Do To Help?
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All great ideas, Kelli! I live in a retirement center, so it would be hard for me to do some of these; but I hope others will consider it. I do have some personal items that I can donate. I give those to the Salvation Army, which is the agency here that runs the shelter, I think.
I think that's great that you give them to the Salvation Army. I know that the Salvation Army has various programs they run, so the items will be put to good use and will be needed by someone. Thank you!
Hazel, I also think it's a great idea to give the items to your church where the youth can benefit from them. Thank you!
I have some adult clothing and children's books and toys bagged up right now for me to take somewhere. I happen to know that the soup kitchen in town has asked for adult clothing for some of the adults in the area who are in serious need, so that is where I'm taking the clothing. I don't know where to bring the toys and books yet, but I will be contacting a few people and organizations to determine where I will bring them.
Kelli, I like your suggestions very much. You got me to thinking about an idea that might actually tie in to the work I do...or have been trying to do but have been struggling with. I don't want to go into any detail about it, but I did a some work with bus trips, meaning I worked with groups of people. Some were teacher (and retired teacher) organizations, some were church groups or various members of various churches around the community, and some were made up of families. This business has dropped off and hasn't given any signs that it will materialize again, but you have given me an idea that just might be useful. I see nothing wrong with it being a part of my job where I will get some benefit from it (because I do need to make a living and earn some income) because I will be giving something back by making direct donations to organizations, shelters, etc. in need. Of course, I don't know if this will work, but it is worth a try, isn't it?
I also do like to entertain, but I can't even afford a picnic party with pb&j sandwiches... and I live in a tiny apartment and have no one around that I know of where I can go to just throw a party. But, I love to throw parties and take care of all the arrangements, including food, beverages, decorations, activities, etc. I did try to offer this as a freebie a number of times, for fun for those who attend and strictly as a means to entertain them or to raise money for worthy causes. I was turned down flat after every attempt. But, I could try again, couldn't I? I just have to work on a new sales pitch or "angle" and maybe get a more favorable response.
Donna, I think what you have listed are all great ideas! The idea is just to get the donated items to families in the community and help to lower stress within the home. What you are doing is doing just that! Thank you so much for giving so much of your time and resources.
Hi,Fabulous site with fantastic information.Thanks.In modern societies the role of child care agencies are growing and assuming new dimensions day by day. Child care is one of the major issues related to the early development of children.