Foundation Grant Funds Training, March 3

Hundreds of local adults will be trained to identify and report child sexual abuse in a project called “Bringing Light To A Dark Subject.” Organized by Kids’ HOPE Center, the project recognizes that a community’s responsibility to safeguard children extends beyond parents, teachers and other official protectors. “It’s our collective responsibility to help children,” said Joanne Shorb, Kids’ Hope program director. Kids’ Hope, an agency of Bay Area Hospital, works with police and other officials to investigate child abuse and care for victims. It recently won a $105,000 grant from The Ford Family Foundation to become one of 10 Oregon pilot sites offering broad-based abuse training for community members. The three-year project’s goal is to train 5 percent of Coos County residents between 18 and 65 years old – 1,812 people in all. Created by the national nonprofit organization Darkness to Light, and featuring presentations from former victims, the two-hour course is titled “Stewards of Children.” It teaches adults to prevent, recognize and react responsibly to child sexual abuse. Child sex abuse is a national problem with an unmistakable local impact. Of 248 children served by Kids’ HOPE Center in 2014, 133 cases – more than half — involved child sex abuse. “It’s clearly an issue in Coos County,” Shorb said. Shorb doesn’t expect the training program to reduce the Kids’ HOPE caseload. Rather, she expects the caseload to rise as a result of increased reporting. “You would think our numbers rising is a bad thing, but it’s really a good thing, because it means more abuse is coming to light,” she said. The program will employ a part-time coordinator and five “facilitators,” who will conduct the training sessions. The facilitators will be paid stipends for their work, but the training will be free for participants, thanks to The Ford Family Foundation’s support. Some local agencies that deal with children and families already have committed to have their employees and volunteers undergo the training. These agencies include Oregon Coast Community Action, which administers Head Start, Early Head Start, CASA, and Great Afternoons; and the Oregon Department of Human Services, with 110 local staff members as well as foster parents and independent service providers. The Ford Family Foundation was established in 1957 by the late Kenneth W. and Hallie E. Ford. Its mission is “successful citizens and vital rural communities” in Oregon and Siskiyou County, Calif. The foundation is located in Roseburg, with a scholarship office in Eugene. Want To Get Involved? Youth organizations, churches, coaches and others interested in the “Stewards of Children” training should call the Kids’ HOPE Center at (541) 266-8806, or email JoAnne.Shorb@bayareahospital.org.