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JOYCE THOMAS: Many children are witnesses to violence;
many children are victims of violence.
The environment can be a risk factor,
but it can also be a protective factor.
The community worker really is the glue
to helping particularly families with limited resources
be able to reestablish themselves.
JOYCE THOMAS: In environments where victimization
is commonplace,
the community can make a tremendous difference.
You might have programs, services, agencies,
that are geared-up,
and families that are geared-up, to protect children.
Faith-based communities make a big difference.
When an entire family is in crisis,
an offering of friendly support can be very nurturing.
KIM CLIFTON: HALOS was founded
by a child psychiatrist and pediatrician
because she saw child victims of abuse and neglect
coming through her psychiatric practice.
While the caregivers were trying very hard
to provide a safe and nurturing home,
they just didn't have the resources
to provide things that all children need,
not to mention children who were healing
from the trauma of abuse and neglect.
And the project grew pretty quickly.
They developed a relationship
with the local Department of Social Services,
and so Charleston County DSS
would tell them what children
who had open cases of abuse and neglect needed.
AMBER: I was a *** victim.
And, one day I got tired of the abuse.
I finally told, and they did something about it.
After I got removed from my mother's house,
my granny got custody of me through the court.
JOYCE BARKER: Being as old as I am, a senior citizen,
and living on a fixed income,
I was fighting it all by myself until I got into HALOS,
and they have helped me quite a bit.
AMBER: HALOS helped me get my stuff for school.
They just been a--a really good backbone for the family.
I'm 18, and I have graduated from high school,
I did a semester in college.
You know, I feel like I got something to live for now.
And, as far as HALOS, they helped me do that.
JOYCE THOMAS: You can't help children
till you help their families.
Parents really need a lot of support.
They need information.
And when we talk about trauma and trauma-informed care,
we know we have to listen,
we have to listen to that trauma story.
So it's important that the parents are linked
to service providers who can help them in a structured way.
JIM HENRY: ...and so somebody who you felt very loved
and you could count on and be secure with wasn't there...
We know that children, whether it's child abuse and neglect,
domestic violence, even community violence--
that parents aren't even aware
of some of the ways they've been exposed to violence and trauma.
And so we started the Children's Trauma Assessment Center
to really help people understand the kids through a trauma lens.
Our project, Project PERK, is about being able to support
children in Kalamazoo and their families
when they've experienced violence,
providing parent treatment as well as child treatment
to empower them to help their kids
manage the impact of trauma and certainly to build resiliency.
ROBERT EZELLE: It's important that we have programs
that are going to keep kids safe.
When you have kids that live at or below the poverty line,
along with that comes a lot of baggage
and a lot of that baggage is exposure to violence.
So if we can provide resources for the kids and their families
that normally would not be available to them,
we jump at the chance to do that.
JOYCE ARMSTRONG: Because we do have the afterschool program
and we do talk to our parents a lot,
there's a lot of trust,
there's a good foundation already laid there
to go out and get a group to come in
and go through the workshop.
JIM HENRY: We've developed a parent group curriculum
helping them understand how the impact of violence
has affected their kids
in terms of their regulation and behavior and learning.
JOYCE ARMSTRONG: What did you feel was beneficial
for you and your family?
JIM HENRY: The child component is really helping them
understand what's happening in their brain,
to help kids learn how to regulate their affect
and to manage stress.
ROBERT EZELLE: The kids feel confident that they can engage
in meaningful conversation with their parents.
Parents are getting more sensitive
to the needs of their children.
They understand the exposure to violence
and how that impacts not only their children
but how it impacts them as a family unit.
WOMAN: With each class I was able to use more of those tools.
JIM HENRY: One of the great things
about having community partnerships
when they are neighborhood centers,
like New Genesis and Boys and Girls Club,
is that people trust this place.
A family coming here can experience connection
and relatedness and a sense of safety.
JOYCE ARMSTRONG: The more you can get the parents involved,
the community involved,
to where you're all saying the same thing,
using the same language,
you're going to have greater results.
JOYCE THOMAS: In working with hard-to-reach families,
cultural factors have come a long way
in establishing trust with the community--
people feeling comfortable, just to know that they are welcome
and that they are not the unusual one
or they don't belong here--
a place to go for help,
where you have an opportunity to take home messages.
TAWNA SANCHEZ: NAYA is a youth services organization.
And people did ask that question:
Why would you put a domestic violence program
in a youth organization?
We work with families who either are on the edge
of losing their children to the child welfare system
or who have already lost their children.
And until everybody deals
with the anger, the hurt,
the frustration, and the pain
of all of those things,
they're not going to heal.
We started with culturally specific
domestic violence services.
As Native people and as a community,
we try to help them stay connected with their culture.
On Wednesday night, we'll have a sibling visit night,
which is an opportunity for youth who are in foster care
to maybe visit with other family members
that they don't normally see.
And so the hope is to be able
to bring all of those siblings and family members together,
share a meal together, share an activity together,
and just be able to bond some as a family.
Family culture night works because mom and/or dad,
and grandma, and several children--
they're engaging as an entire family.
They have something to consistently participate in
on a regular basis,
and they feel connected.
JOYCE THOMAS: When we think about protecting children
and violence,
we really have to say it's everybody's responsibility.