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About Us
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Child Advocacy is a non-profit agency with a mission to improve the welfare of children and their families through education, training, and support for the prevention of substance abuse and child abuse and neglect.
Our Staff
Audra Stahl
Executive Director
Ronda Sorensen
Parent Educator
Pam Mahin
RRC Coordinator
Ty Warczinsky
GCSAC Coordinator
Richelle Davis
Prevention Educator
Heather Gardner
CAC Coordinator
Michelle Zombeck
CASA Coordinator
Brenda Shafley
Office Assistant
Board of Directors
President
Wes Wickes
Youth for Christ
Vice President Jennifer Leppien CASA Treasurer Carolyn Studley Community Representative
Secretary Kelly Piotrowski Dept. of Human Services
Lori Apple
Comm. Mental Health - Isabella Co.
Wendy Currie
Mid Michigan Dist. Health Dept.
Colleen Davis
Prosecuting Attorney's Office
Carolyn Hilley
Gratiot Co. Comm. Mental Health
Rob DuHadway
DuHadway Dance Dimensions
Donalynn Ingersoll
Principal, Luce Rd. Elementary
David Justin Alma School Board
Mike Morris
Detective, Gratiot Co. Sheriff's Dept.
Jennifer Stambaugh
DeafBlind Central CMU
Kim Vetter
MI State Police
Joe Yourchock
Community Representative
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Car Seat Safety | |
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Did you know that at Child Advocacy we can install and provide a safety inspection for your child safety seat? Child Advocacy has a nationally certified safety seat technician available!
To make an appointment call 989-463-1422 or 800-552-4489 |
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Permanent Prescription Drop Off
Sites
Alma Police Dept.
525 E. Superior St.
Mon. - Fri.
8 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Gratiot Co. Sheriff
226 E. Center
Ithaca
open 24 hrs./day
7 days/week
Both sites accept
prescription pills, liquids, and patches. | |
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| Your Feedback!
Thank you all for being so nice this semester! You were all so welcoming and tried to include me in as much as you could. This internship definitely made my last months as a college student great!
from Courtney - CMU Intern
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Back to school time!
The annual Back to School event is in full swing this year - details below.
Our CASA program is seeking volunteers to meet the needs of Gratiot County children. Please help spread the word.
Enjoy,
Child Advocacy Staff
Check out our website www.linkforfamilies.org.
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Gratiot County Continuum of Care
Back to School Event
Wednesday, August 27
St. Louis Church of Christ,
1075 W. Monroe Road -
St. Louis
9:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.
Bring the family for school readiness supplies, community
resources and family activities sponsored by Gratiot County agencies.
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Have you Had These Thoughts?
By: Michelle Zombeck
CASA Coordinator
Can a CASA volunteer really make a difference? I don't have any training. What could I do? I don't have a background in social work. Is there a "typical" CASA Advocate? Somebody will help, won't they? I am sure they have a great foster family. The state pays for everything. What will people think? I can't, I will get too attached. Don't they pay people to do that? What kind of training does a CASA Volunteer receive? What will my kids think? I have so much going on right now. I want to help but I don't know what I could do. How long is a case in court? I don't know if I would be good at this. How is CASA funded? How long does a CASA Volunteer remain involved with a case? How much time does it require? Stop wondering, come to an informational meeting. Learn more about Court Appointed Special Advocates and what you can do to advocate for abused and neglected kids in our community. Call Child Advocacy at 989-463-1422 or email [email protected] to sign up for the next informational meeting. "We must not, in trying to think about how we can make a big difference, ignore the small daily differences we can make which, over time, add up to big differences that we often cannot foresee." - Marian Wright Edelman -
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Help Us Save Kids from Heatstroke
by Pam Mahin
As we approach rising summer temperatures, the danger for kids left in hot vehicles increases exponentially: at least 13 children have already died this year from vehicular heatstroke. Heatstroke is the leading cause of non-crash vehicle fatalities for children 14 and under. Nearly every 10 days, a child dies from being left in a hot vehicle. More than half (52%) of kids who died from vehicular heatstroke were "forgotten" by their caregiver. This is a 100-percent preventable tragedy.
On a hot day, a child's temp heats up to 5 times faster than an adult's does. High body temperatures can cause permanent injury or even death. In more than 29% of cases of fatal heatstroke, a child got into the vehicle on their own. Heatstroke deaths have happened even when vehicles were parked in shade and the temperatures were 80 degrees or less.
If you see a child alone in a hot vehicle, call 911 or your local emergency number immediately. If the child is in distress due to heat, get them out as quickly as possible. Cool the child rapidly (not an ice bath but by spraying them with cool water or with a garden hose).
Visit www.safercar.gov/parents/heatstroke.htm or www.safekids.org for more information.
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Scheduled Classes
Childcare Provider Trainings
(parents are welcome to attend)
It's Clear as Mud: Cultural Competencies/Self Assessment Survey
Wednesday, August 13
6:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.
CMU - HSB - Mt. Pleasant
Visit www.greatstartconnect.org to register
3 Training Credits
Emotional Coaching: What Am I Feeling
Thursday, August 28
6:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.
Alma Public Library
3 Training Credits
Cost $25.00
Visit www.greatstartconnect.org to register
Please call our office with questions about any of the above classes/workshops at (989) 463-1422.
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Summer Hours
Starting the week of June 16
Monday - Thursday
9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Closed Friday
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It is with a heavy heart that I bring you the news that beginning August 8th Child Advocacy will no longer be in the business of working with Childcare Providers. We no longer have a contract to provide services as the Great Start Regional Resource Center. All of our staff would like to thank the Childcare providers in Gratiot and Isabella County for allowing us to assist you, provide trainings, and work with you for so many years. Child Advocacy has been working with providers in the community since back in the early 80's and our RRC staff has truly enjoyed building relationships with you.
We have been notified that services for Gratiot and Isabella County will be provided out of Midland and Lansing, however we will be available to help you through this transition if you need assistance.
Lending Library news - Although the RRC contract has been terminated we are excited to report that we will still have Lending Library materials for you to check out and use. Fortunately for Child Advocacy we wrote our own grants to purchase materials, so we will still have items available for you to use. We will also be spending the next few months re-building our library, so if you would like to see a specific themed tote, book, game, or DVD in the library, please let us know.
In other agency news we would like to thank Toni Davis for her years of service as a Child Advocacy Board Member. Toni has been a great asset to our team, and we will miss her at the meetings. Good Luck to you Toni on your next adventure!!
Child Advocacy continues to strive to bring you quality programs, events, trainings, and information. I am excited to report that this next year is going to be our best year yet! Stay tuned for our 2nd annual Mother/Daughter Conference, Trivia Night, Shop with a Hero, Community trainings on suicide prevention and emerging drug trends, Family Expo/Carnival, Superhero 5K, Alma vs- Ithaca Alumni Basketball, an art show, assemblies, and even a party just for Princesses and Pirates!!! Not to mention classes, classes, and more classes!! If you would like to get involved with Child Advocacy or you would like more information on any of our events or programs give us a call at 989-463-1422!
Thank you for reading our newsletter. We hope you enjoy the rest of your summer!
Sincerely,
Audra Stahl
Executive Director |
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