Colorful reminders to be planted for Child Abuse Prevention Month

During the week of April 1-7, 1,372 reminders will be planted to spin cheerfully in the wind. These reminders will each represent one case of child abuse or neglect that was reported to Clermont County children’s services.

The hope is that the tiny reminders will make the prospect of being a child in Clermont County a little safer in the future.

“This is in recognition of Child Abuse Prevention Month, and it is designed to bring attention to child abuse and neglect,” said Children’s Protective Services deputy director Anne Arbaugh. “We want to make people aware of the need that they report this to children’s services in whatever county they live in. This will show how many cases we investigated last year, which was 1,372.”

Like last year, a tiny pinwheel will be planted in one of three locations around the county to draw attention to the plight of abused children. Arbaugh said that the visual reminder can help people to get a better grasp on just how many cases are reported each year.

"That's how many pinwheels we will put up," said Arbaugh. "It really gives you an idea of how many cases we are talking about. Not all of those cases were substantiated as abuse or neglect. This tends to be a fairly steady number. It may be down by a few from the year before, but we find that we are substantiating more of the calls we get than we used to."

When a case of child abuse or neglect is suspected, Arbaugh said that reports can be given to her agency, which will start an investigation. Many times, she said, it turns up to be a misunderstanding, but, all too often, the end result is a child in need.

"If you have something to report, call 732-STOP," said Arbaugh. "We have people who will take the call and get the information. You can do it anonymously or leave your information, but either way, it's not shared with the family in the report."

For more information, go online to http://www.co.clermont.oh.us/djfs/cps.