3. OPERATION BACKPACK

Operation Backpack helps the Collin County's Children's Advocacy Center help abused and neglected children.

Child abuse has reached epidemic proportions in the United States, Texas and Collin County. It is a crime against the most vulnerable among us and too often goes unreported. It is relentlessly democratic victimizing children from all socioeconomic groups, religions, ethnicities, genders and age groups (the law defines a child as under the age of 18 years). Prevent Child Abuse America reports that each year the (direct and indirect) cost of child abuse and neglect in the United States is in excess of $94billion.

Abuse occurs everyday in various forms. It can come in the form of neglect, physical or emotional abuse. Children are brough each day to the Children's Advocacy Center to seperate them from their abusers. One particular case, several children were awoken to their mother's screams. Their father was trying to kill their mother. They ran from the house to a neighbor's home and called 911. Needless to say the children were removed from the home that night. After counseling, the children were prepared to return to school. They didn't have any school supplies to return to school. Through schools in Plano and Youth Together, these children received backpacks and school supplies to start school again.

Remember, Youth Together supplies the tools to help you teach your children about caring for others. We will give you flyers to market the program and provide boards advertising the program. After children bring supplies to school, we will even have a high school student from Plano pick up the supplies and take them to the Children's Advocacy Center. They will receive service hour credit for this delivery as well as resume credit for college

The center’s child friendly, inviting, spacious lobby welcomes children with brightly colored houses for exploring and offers an immediate sense of warmth and security to children coming to recount the trauma of their abuse. Displayed along the lobby’s back wall are works of art created by children who have come to tell their stories.

The Activity Center is the first room visited by a child during his initial visit to the center. The room is bright and cheerful, filled with activities that appeal to young children, youth and teenagers alike. A volunteer greets the child and together they spend time playing games, putting together puzzles, watching videos and sharing other activities intended to put the child at ease.

A trained forensic interviewer soon joins the child in the Activity Center. Together they enter one of the center’s three interview rooms. In this room the interviewer speaks with the child about the circumstances of the abuse. She explains that a camera in the corner is recording the interview so that, hopefully, they only have to speak about the traumatic events one time.

Adjacent the interview room is an observation room where professionals from law enforcement, Child Protective Services, the District Attorney’s Office, the Clinical or Community Resource Department(s) may observe the interview. Prior to its conclusion, the interviewer checks with the professionals to ensure that all pertinent questions have been asked, minimizing the number of interviews, and hopefully the trauma, a child must endure.

When a child suffers sexual abuse, he/she may be asked to visit the Medical Suite where a Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner will conduct a sexual assault examination. A volunteer greets the child and offers a hand-made quilt for cover and comfort during the examination.

The Rainbow Room is a wonderful, colorful and efficiently run resource center that provides emergency items for children served by the center. Child Protective Service workers and Community Resource Interns are able to obtain clothing, toiletries, car seats, school supplies, shoes and other items for clients.

The Clinical Department offers children and their non-offending family members the chance to heal from their trauma. In ten brightly colored rooms filled with developmentally specialized playthings therapists provide music, art, play and family therapy.