Stop Child Abuse Now (SCAN) - 3185

Tonight's special guest is Daphne Young from Scottsdale, Arizona, the Chief Communications Officer of Childhelp. Now celebrating it's 40th anniversary, Childhood features a hotline, 1-800-4-A-CHILD, that offers crisis intervention, information, and referrals to thousands of emergency, social service, and support resources. All contacts are confidential. There are also individual state-by-state hotlines to call, too. As Childhelp says, "Reporting child abuse can be scary. If you are a witness to or a victim of child abuse there is a huge benefit to making the report yourself. Being able to tell your story first hand gives the child care worker much better information than if it came from someone not involved. Your story could save a life." And they go on, "Our counselors are available to talk through child abuse situations if you have questions or need additional support. We can also help research additional resources that may be available to you." Read the history of Childhelp and its founders, Sara O'Meara and Yvonne Fedderson. The Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline is dedicated to the prevention of child abuse. It is primarily funded by individuals and companies, and has given assistance to more than 2 million help seekers. In the U.S. and Canada, the hotline is staffed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week with professional crisis counselors who, through interpreters, provide assistance in over 170 languages. The hotline offers crisis intervention, information, and referrals to thousands of emergency, social service, and support resources. All contacts are confidential. As they say, "Bottom line, we are here to answer the call."