In order to raise awareness of Child Abuse Prevention Month and the need to keep children and families safe, DePelchin Children’s Center has created a garden of blue pinwheels that will be on display in Discovery Green Park until April 17.
Each of the 5,622 petals on the blue pinwheels in the display represents a victim of child abuse or neglect in Harris County last year. Organizations throughout the country use the color blue to raise awareness of Child Abuse Prevention Month in April.
DePelchin President and CEO Jenifer Jarriel and other members of the organization’s staff were joined by local Child Protective Services staff, including CPS Regional Director Leshia Fisher, to set up the display on Monday.
“We hope this display will raise awareness among visitors to Discovery Green and inspire them to think about the importance of keeping children safe here in our community,” Jarriel said. “The number of pinwheels displayed reminds us of the considerable need for services and resources that create and sustain healthy families.”
DePelchin Children’s Center has served children and families in Houston since 1892. Today, the organization uses a range of programs and service to prevent of child maltreatment. DePelchin’s programs that focus on prevention of abuse and neglect include:
- Counseling services to support children and parents. Clinicians help DePelchin clients facing any number of mental health issues, from substance abuse to anxiety to depression.
- Parenting classes. These programs help equip parents with the strategies and approaches they need to maintain loving, caring homes for their children. An example of this is ParentingHelp, a prevention program that works one-on-one with parents and caregivers to create protective factors for their family while giving them a look at why children misbehave, how to get children to behave, what to do when children misbehave and how to parent positively in real-world, everyday situations. Some DePelchin parenting programs focus specifically on fathers and their unique roles in their children’s lives.
- The DePelchin Family Resource Center in the Spring Branch area of Houston. This is a one-stop shop for families seeking a variety of services. Families who visit the center can, for example, sign up for parenting or counseling services or learn about other available forms of support from DePelchin and other organizations.
DePelchin is also an accredited foster care and adoption agency that connects children in need of care with families. Sometimes children enter foster care and are able to reunite with their birth families, while other times their foster families go through the process of adopting them.
“Protecting children is at the heart of our work,” Jarriel said. “The generosity of our supporters and volunteers and the tremendous love and kindness of our DePelchin families make it possible for us to offer so many programs and services that help keep children safe.”
