LONGVIEW, Texas — Nearly 700,000 children are abused every year. A safe haven in Longview has just received a large donation to help change this statistic.
Matt Shillings with Patterson Nissan helped raise these funds. "What an amazing cause, helping support those kids. We’re happy to do it,” he said.
Though the money was received at the dealership, it’s destination is right down the road at The Martin House Children's Advocacy Center.
“It is so hard to hear these awful details of sexual and physical abuse coming from these sweet, innocent, tiny little voices. But what I choose to focus on is that we are here to help these children and by coming here, that is the first step of the healing process," executive director, Roxanne Stevenson, said.
Every year this center serves more than 700 children who have been victims of physical and sexual abuse. It provides forensic exams and a safe, child-friendly facility where children can be interviewed using a sensitive, age-appropriate method by specially trained staff.
You can do your part to shatter the silence that surrounds child abuse by learning the signs. Here are just a few:
- Unexplained injuries
- Changes in behavior, school performance, or eating and sleeping patterns
- Regression to thumb-sucking or bedwetting
- Sexual behaviors, language or knowledge inappropriate for the child's age
- Lack of personal care or hygiene
Join the Children's Advocacy Center in their mission to ensure every child has the opportunity to be heard and feel protected.
If you suspect abuse of any form, you’re encouraged to say something. Call the Texas abuse hotline at (800)-252-5400 or visit txabusehotline.org