Posted on Mar 27, 2019 in
NEWSWORTHY
Shown getting ready for the event are Exchange Club of Sugar Land President, David Lanagan, Detective Dawn Welch, Sheriff Troy Nehls, Lt. Tiffaney Budnik, Detective Lesley Vaught, Child Advocates of Fort Bend CEO Ruthanne Mefford and Sergeant Tim Morris.
Child Advocates of Fort Bend, Exchange Club of Sugar Land and the Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office are collaborating to bring awareness about Child Abuse Awareness Month. Hosted by the Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office, The Pinwheel Project will be held at Homestead Park at 1422 Eugene Heimann Circle in Richmond – directly across from the Justice Center. This free community event is fun for the whole family. There will be food, games, inflatable bounce houses, face painting, a train, a petting zoo, music, prize giveaways and more. The Pinwheel Project will be Saturday, April 13th and it will open with Light of Hope. This will be the sixth year for the Sheriff’s Office to host the Pinwheel Project.
“For sixteen years, Child Advocates of Fort Bend and Exchange Club of Sugar Land have partnered to bring awareness to April Child Abuse Awareness Month with Light of Hope,” stated Child Advocates of Fort Bend CEO Ruthanne Mefford. “We work very closely with the Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office and have supported The Pinwheel Project since its inception by hosting a booth, running games and providing materials and child abuse awareness information and we were absolutely thrilled when they offered us the opportunity to open their annual Pinwheel Project again this year.”
This community event is the brainchild of Lesley Vaught, a detective with the Special Crimes Unit at the Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office. Det. Vaught, who has been with the Sheriff’s Office for 13 years, developed the project with her unit five years ago. When they determined that they needed to do more to raise awareness of child abuse in Fort Bend County, the Special Crimes Unit created the Pinwheel Project in observance of Child Abuse Awareness month.
“The Pinwheel Project is so important to me because it brings our community together and lets others know that we are here and we do care. It gives people the opportunity to learn the signs of child abuse and how to report,” stated Vaught.
Although child abuse knows no season, April is designated as National Child Abuse Awareness Month. Some of the ways to participate in Child Abuse Awareness Month include wearing a blue ribbon, helping to pass out blue ribbons, posting child abuse prevention materials in your place of business and inviting Child Advocates of Fort Bend to talk to your group about child abuse. For more information, call 281-344-5100 or go to www.cafb.org.
