Adults responsibility to protect children

Our God has trusted you with His Children. It is your responsibility as a parent or guardian, and the responsibility of the adults you leave your children with, to protect those children.

The adults have the responsibility to protect and love them, and help them to be all God intended for them to be.

WARNING! Before leaving your children in a church nursery or Sunday school class, check with the church or youth organization to make sure they have a child protection program in place.

Ask specific questions. Do you check the backgrounds of anyone who will interact with those children? Do you fingerprint? What kind of supervision do you provide? Are bathroom policies enforced? Do you observe the two-adult rule? Child sexual abuse occurs more often when there is one-to-one contact with the child.

Do not leave your child in a church or youth organization where they would be alone with only one adult with them. Never leave them in the care of a teenager at the church or youth organization.

Creating Safer Havens’ Child Sexual Abuse Policies are recommended for churches and youth organizations to help prevent child sexual abuse from happening. DO NOT BE IN DENIAL. Hold the church or youth organization accountable. Ask to see their policies on child sexual abuse.

Creating Safer Haven’s Child Protection Program focuses on adult responsibility and accountability. Adults have the responsibility to protect children and youth in their care.

If your church does not have a program in place to protect children from sexual abuse, refer them to Creating Safer Havens’ website: CreatingSaferHavens.com, or call 619-449-9843 and we will contact them.

Don’t leave your children with anyone you are not comfortable with. Always go with your gut level feeling and suspicions, even if you don’t have proof. Trust your instincts.

If you are not sure of a situation, but feel it may be child sexual abuse, and if you are concerned about making an official report, call a child abuse help line anyway. They can help you evaluate the situation. The National Child Abuse hotline is: 1-800-344-6000. Your phone information service can provide you with your local child abuse hotline number. By being informed, you may help protect a child or children from sexual abuse and it could be your own.

Let us work together to raise the bar of protection for all children in our homes, churches and youth organizations. You may be a child’s only hope.