Tracy Connell, program
director for the Exchange-Club-Carl Perkins Center for the
Prevention of Child Abuse in Carroll County, and Americorps
volunteer Denise Coleman outside the new child advocacy
center located at 341 Redden Street in Huntingdon.
"We don't leave the hospital with a book telling us how to
parent," says Tracy Connell. "We have to figure it out, and
there are no perfect parents."
Tracy is program director of the Carl Perkins Center for the
Prevention of Child Abuse in Carroll County, one of 13
locations of the Jackson-based center.
Tracy is aware that many child rearing practices are learned
during parents' own childhoods in settings that may have
been faulty at best and, at worse, abusive, in a
perpetuating cycle of misery for children and parents alike.
Evidence of this dilemma is as close as the Tennessee court
system online at www.tsc.state.tn.us. One Court of Criminal
Appeals case linked at the site refers to a West Tennessee
case, filed in May 2004, in which a father had been found
guilty of child abuse against his six-year-old son. During
the initial investigation, law enforcement officials
"observed numerous injuries, which covered his back, legs
and arms. Some of these injuries were scabbed over, and some
were whelps. (The father) advised me that he had disciplined
his son as he had been disciplined as a child, and he did
not think that this was wrong. (He) did not show any remorse
at all for the injuries that he had inflicted on his son."
A Department of Human Services case manager noted the father
also disciplined his one-year-old daughter with switches but
only "popped her on the legs."
Concerning the son, the trial court noted, "this child was
treated with exceptional cruelty, both emotionally and
physically over what must have been a prolonged period of
time because you couldn't inflict that many injuries in a
short period of time. The injuries to this child I find were
great. Even six days after the fact photographs show
bruises, they show welts, they show scars, they show open
wounds. Those wounds are all over his back, the back of his
legs, the front of his legs, the sides of his legs. I
personally on the exhibit the state presented counted over
seventy marks. There were injuries on his legs, on the front
of his legs, literally going up to the line of his underwear
at the point where his underwear covered his genitals. There
were injuries on the back of his arms. All of this to a
victim who was particularly vulnerable because of his age
and also because of the custodial parent/child relationship
that existed."
Appellate judge David G. Hayes affirmed the order of the
trial court, sentencing the man to four-years in the
Department of Corrections.
But what if the act had only been circumvented through
education--what if the father had reached out for help
before the abuse occurred?
That is why Tracy is so pleased to be able to represent the
Carl Perkins Center, a program with a main focus of
preventing child abuse before it has begun, thus breaking
the cycle now and for generations to come.
Born and raised in Huntingdon, Tracy graduated from
Huntingdon High School in 1992 and earned a degree in social
work from the University of Tennessee at Martin, where she
is also pursuing a master's degree in counseling, which she
expects to receive in December.
She came on board at the Carl Perkins Center in Huntingdon
in September last year, having formerly worked at Pathways,
a program Tracy notes focuses on problems after they occur.
"At Pathways we always worked with people 'after' something:
after abuse, after a behavioral problem, after court
action," she says. "Carl Perkins focuses on preventive
services. That's what I really, really like about the
center. Even if someone has never had a problem before, they
can still get problems, and somebody is here then to offer
them support."
In addition to Tracy, the center is staffed by Americorps
volunteer Denise Coleman, who will soon be joined by a
part-time office manager.
Denise's role at the center is to provide supplemental
services such as tutoring, transportation, or a listening
ear.
"She can't do parental counseling, but she can be here just
to listen, just to be supportive," says Tracy. "Some people
have nobody to rely on or a babysitter, Denise is able to
give them a break."
Office hours are from 8:00 a.m. through 5:00 p.m. Monday
through Friday but, Tracy counsels, it's best to call in
advance, since she is often out of the office as her primary
role is to conduct in-home visits with ten families one hour
per week.
Most of her cases arise from parents who call requesting
help with behavioral issues. When a case is opened, goals
are set according to what the family hopes to accomplish.
"A lot of times they just need to come up with ways for more
effective discipline," she says. "Sometimes its just stress:
we live in a fast-paced world, everybody's got a lot of
things going on. We help by being supportive, helping to
reduce stress with communication skills and the anger
management that goes along with that."
The Carl Perkins Center provides a 24-hour per day, seven
day a week crisis line (1-800-273-4747) that is available to
anyone, regardless of whether he or she is a client. Staffed
at the central office in Jackson, hotline operators have
access to social workers on call in every center.
A waiting list for parents needing help prompted Tracy to
offer group parenting classes now attended by four clients.
"I'd love to be able to hire a social worker so we could
work with more families," she says. "It's hard when a parent
calls and I can't go out and see them because I don't have
time as far as my caseload is concerned."
Since Tracy joined the center, she has been able to close
out five cases after the families reached their goals.
"Last year alone we served 106 children in Carroll County,"
she says, "A lot of times we work with them three months to
a year or however long we need to; we just work with them
until their goals are achieved and they feel comfortable."
The center also maintains a food pantry that is open to
anyone in the community as well as a stock of hygiene
products.
"We're here to serve the community and help the children of
the community to where everyone can function better; that's
our ultimate goal," she says. To that end, the center keeps
a list of other resources available to help families learn
what support is available to them.
"Mainly to keep the child safe, that's the main goal of the
center," she says, "If we can work as a team for the child,
whether the family needs transportation or other resources,
we can make them aware what they can get access to.
Sometimes they don't know where to go. We provide them with
the resources they need."
The center in February relocated to a neighborhood
environment at 341 Redden Street in Huntingdon, behind
Thomas Park. The relocation from its prior location, in the
basement of the courthouse, was possible thanks to state
funding made available for the inception of a "child
advocacy center".
Tracy relaxes in the
children's playroom in a chair provided by New Generations
Furniture Company.
The concept of the child advocacy center was developed as a
means to reduce the trauma a child experiences as child
protection agencies and law enforcement personnel undertake
steps necessary in the successful investigation and
prosecution of crimes against children.
Where previously a child might be interviewed at several
locations by various personnel (Department of Human Services
counselors, Sheriff's Department investigators, and
representatives of the District Attorney's office, for
example) they are instead able to be interviewed once--at
the relatively homey atmosphere of the advocacy center and
by one person--in a manner that satisfies the requirements
of all agencies while affording the child the protection and
comfort he or she needs and deserves.
The interview process is facilitated by a forensic
investigator from Jackson, Connell says, who is specially
trained in interviewing abused children. The investigator
engages the child from within a small sitting room while the
conference is attended in an adjacent room by means of a
television monitor. Personnel may ask the investigator to
address particular questions either by means of an earpiece
worn by the investigator or through consultation during a
break in the interview.
"Because the child is only interviewed one time, hopefully
they can prosecute better and keep kids safe," says Connell,
citing the human propensity to forget previously mentioned
details from one interview to the next or to recall items in
later interviews, "Hopefully they will be able to gather
enough evidence to keep them safe. Because the child is
scared, they've been abused a long time and they're scared.
It's a little less stress on them and a little less scary
because they've been traumatized enough."
The goal is to locate a child advocacy center in every
judicial district in the state. Connell says the Carroll
County center is the fourth in West Tennessee, apart from
Shelby County. Other centers are located in Martin, Jackson,
and Lexington. There are at least 28 centers, so far,
statewide.
While technically the Carroll County advocacy center serves
the 29th Judicial District, encompassing Carroll, Benton,
Henry, Decatur, and Hardin counties, Tracy says the centers
work as a team with the child being served at the center
closest to home.
The idea of child advocacy centers has been popularized by
Tennessee First Lady Andrea Conte' through walks across the
state to increase awareness about child sexual abuse.
Herself a victim of child abuse, Conte' winds up her walks
this month with a stroll April 12-13 from Johnson City to
Bristol and the Country Music Marathon in Nashville April 30
(see www.andreawalks.com for more information.)
Says Conte' on her Web site, "Child sexual abuse is a crime,
it's underreported, and it's prevalent. Last year in
Tennessee, 6,000 children were seen in child advocacy
centers across the state, and every mile I walk represents
ten of these kids... Our journey is long, but with your help
success is sure to come--one step at a time."
The site reveals that, in Tennessee in 2003, 11,801 children
were victims of some type of abuse with 2,229 of those
children victims of sexual abuse and 1,529 victims of
physical abuse. Nine Tennessee children died that year as a
result of physical abuse.
Nationwide, it says, in 1997, "a staggering 1,054,000
children (15 out of every 1000) were confirmed by child
protective service agencies as victims of some form of
abuse."
The Carl Perkins Center Web site (www.carlperkinscenter.org)
states that last year, in Tennessee, there were over 38,000
cases reported, or 104 children every day.
"In Tennessee, more children suffer neglect than any other
form of maltreatment," it says. "Investigations determined
that approximately 41 percent of the cases reported were for
neglect, 16 percent were reported for physical abuse, 24
percent for sexual abuse, 1 percent for emotional abuse and
18 percent for other forms of maltreatment."
The "Kids Count - State of the Child in 2003" report
calculated the rate of child abuse in Carroll County as 6.7
per 1000 children under the age of 18.
According to the United States Department of Health and
Human Services, in 2002, 60.5 percent of victims nationwide
experienced neglect (including medical neglect); 18.6
percent were physically abused; 9.9 percent were sexually
abused; and 6.5 percent were emotionally or psychologically
maltreated, in addition to "other types of maltreatment as
'abandonment', 'threats of harm to the child', and
'congenital drug addiction'.
Of the victims reported, 48.1 percent were boys and 51.9
percent were girls. The youngest children had the highest
rate of victimization.
Approximately two-fifths (40.3 percent) of child victims
were maltreated by their mothers acting alone; another 19.1
percent were maltreated by their fathers acting alone; 18.0
percent were abused by both their mother and father. Victims
abused by a nonparental perpetrator accounted for 13.0
percent of the total.
The implications are staggering for the real children
represented by the numbers. Other numbers give Carroll
Countians reason to take heart: the community has responded
in a big way to help fund the needs of the center in order
to aid in the effort to prevent child abuse.
Gearing up for this past Saturday's Music, Dinner and
Auction fundraiser, Tracy noted she had hoped to sell enough
tickets to fill 25 tables of eight; instead, a week before
the event, nearly 29 tables had been sold at a cost of $25
per ticket.
Peggy King of Camden donated her time in catering the event.
Huntingdon Mayor Dale Kelley and county Mayor Kenny McBride
donated themselves to be auctioned off to the highest bidder
willing to have them work for a day. Among other donations
received for the evening event were a seven-day/six-night
condo in Orlando during the last week in May; a country
breakfast for two with Dixie Carter was donated by the
local-born actress; and a $400 gift certificate was
contributed by New Generations Furniture Company.
"A lot of local businesses in Bruceton, Clarksburg,
Hollow-Rock, Huntingdon and McKenzie donated items for the
silent auction," Tracy says.
She especially praises the efforts of Ben Gaines, Jr., CEO
of New Generations Furniture Company in McKenzie.
"He's the main reason we were able to get the center in
Carroll County," says Tracy, citing numerous fundraisers
hosted by the employees of New Generation Furniture Company
over the past several years. "They were able to raise a lot
of money to get us started," she adds. "They're a big, big
support."
Gaines also donated much of the furnishings for the new
advocacy center in keeping with efforts to create a homey
atmosphere for children arriving for interviews.
The center, rented from K & K Realty in Huntingdon, received
an overall facelift before the move, with owner Dale Kelley
closing in the carport to create a conference room, painting
the home inside and out, and adding new floor coverings.
"He has done a lot of work to get it up and going for us,"
Tracy says.
The center also features a workroom with copy machine and
other office equipment, a kitchen, and a break room that
doubles as a place where family members "can relax over a
cup of coffee." A playroom full of toys donated by members
of the community doubles as a place where parents and
children can enjoy supervised visitation.
Tess Brown of Jackson volunteered her time and paint for
murals in the front office and playroom: a train motif
inspired by the center's proximity to Huntingdon's historic
railway.
Additional rooms include the front office, Tracy's office
and another office for the social worker she hopes to hire
as funds become available.
"The social worker's office is ready," Tracy chimes as she
gives a tour of the facility. "We hope to expand our
services and be able to hire a social worker. It all depends
on grant support from United Way and community. But grants
go away and funding goes away; the community is the only way
we know for sure we can keep the doors open."
Along with the Carl Perkins Center telethon held in August
each year, the dinner and auction will become an annual
event, held on the second Saturday in March. Among other
local fundraisers are Kay McAlister's annual Home Interior
Open House and the annual wrestling match that this year is
scheduled for October 31. Tracy stresses that all the money
raised in Carroll County stays in the county.
Carroll County children themselves have gotten in on the act
with the McKenzie Middle School Kiwanis Builders Club
raising $750 for the center. Another community fundraiser
was the Terry Fire Department's chili and stew supper, which
raised $1450.
"The more we can get donated the less we have to take away
from the kids," Tracy says earnestly, "And the community has
been wonderful. I'm from Carroll County but I did not
realize how wonderful this community really was until I
found out how they support this center."
