"We are a very active family in our church and I volunteer at many school functions as well so I know most of the parents and friends of my children. I monitor text messages and I use SpectorPro to monitor online access to the internet. Being alert and making sure my kids are safe has always been the top priority for me. I would say that I’m very much involved and there’s very little that I don’t know about my kids. When I see a news report regarding child sexual abuse I wonder how does this happen in families if parents are really tuned in and watching their children. There must be issues in the home, otherwise how would a parent not know what’s going on with their child.
Several months ago, while monitoring my 17 year old daughter’s computer, I found a message from her stating that she had been molested by our neighbor, a boy her same age, from about age 6 through middle school. Were there ever signs? Did I attempt to understand or get help when I saw the signs? Yes, there were signs. Yes, I attempted to get answers and find the problem. The problem was that she never told and I was not trained to recognize the symptoms.
Never in a million years would I ever have thought such a thing would happen to my child. As in-touch and proactive as I thought I was, I missed it. I wish I had been given access to testimonies such as these 20 years ago, before I became a Mom. I wish all victims could have the courage to come forward and tell their story to help educate us all. I wish everyone in our community would step up and make a commitment to face this issue and the statistics so that we can begin to stop this madness. I wish I had been given the opportunity to attend workshops and learn how to prevent abuse, recognize the signs of sexual abuse, how and when to talk about healthy sexuality and what to say or most importantly what not to say if a child discloses their deep dark secret.
If I had been given the chance to attend these workshops 20 years ago, would I have gone? Would I have taken two hours out of my busy schedule each week for these classes? I cannot answer that question because that time in my life has passed. I can tell you this, today I would give anything in the whole world to go back in time and get any little piece of knowledge that would help eliminate the possibility of the events that took place right under my nose.
Over the last year I have attended each workshop offered by VOICE Today. Never again will I be caught off guard, untrained or uneducated about this subject. The workshops are not just books and lectures from a podium, you will see and hear teenagers, adults and detectives tell their amazing stories. With a child in middle school, the reference book on internet safety has been a blessing in my home. We now take every opportunity available to talk about healthy sexuality. I would highly recommend these workshops to every person that knows a child."
Testimonial #3
"thank you so much for today! I deeply appreciate what you are doing for all of us! I would NEVER EVER
had thought so deeply about such a vile and vicious problem in our society if it weren't for what I have learned in the past 2 workshops! THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!"