susan fitch

Once every year, you'll find a small army of children standing at quiet attention on the lawn of the courthouse in Farmington.  They are not real children, merely silhouetted shapes of children cut from wood and painted red.  Each one is unique and different; one running, one jumping, another skipping -- each one captured and frozen in some sort of happy moment.  It's certainly an eye catching display.  It grows larger every year with more and more children join their ranks.  It might be a delightful or enjoyable display, except that each cut out represents a real child.  A child who has been sexually abused that year.

As parents it is our job to keep our children safe.  We are diligent in our efforts.  We put gates across the stairs, we teach them to look both ways before crossing the street, we teach them not to talk to strangers and to say no to drugs.  It's true, we parents are a vigilant group.  Ever watchful, ever protecting.  And yet, every 34.9 seconds in the United States, another case of child abuse is reported.

In the Ogden area alone last year there were nearly 650 report cases of child sex abuse.  You may be thinking that it could never happen to you, or anyone you know for that matter.  But, sexual crimes don't have the same boundaries that some other potential hazards seem to.  Unlike a drug addict who may have blood shot and glazed over eyes or rotting teeth, or the gang member who wears his 'colors' and baggy pants -- Sex offenders come from every walk of life; rich, poor, old, young, religious, non-religious....no one area or group or lifestyle is immune.  It affects us all.

For the last several years, Bub and I have been involved with the Children's Justice Center.  The "CJC" is a safe kid-friendly place for kids to be examined and interviewed on videotape about their experiences.  Because of the CJC, these kids escape being victimized over and over again through repeated interviews and facing their abusers in court.  It may not sound like a big deal.  But it meant a lot to the teen age girl who didn't have to face her father in court after he'd molested her for years. (He won't see life outside of prison again) It meant a lot to the child whose abuser threatened him with his life, and it means a lot to the little ones whose documented injuries speak for them.

The CJC is a non-profit organization and runs entirely off of the proceeds of it's one and only fundraiser, an annual auction called "Starry Night" which is coming up on May 2, 2009.  All sorts of items are donated to the CJC to be auctioned off at the Starry Night event.  Everything from European vacations to guitar lessons and puppies down to house plants, books or a basket of sand toys.

While the auction this year has plenty of big ticket items, they are drastically lacking in smaller items for the silent auction.  For the past six years I have donated original artwork (That's all I know how to do!) and I'll be doing it again this year.  However, I'd like to ask all of you to think about donating something.  If you sell Mary Kay, perhaps a small set of lotions or make up.  If you make jewelry, perhaps a set of earrings - matching bracelet and necklace with it would be even better!  If you are a photographer, maybe a gift certificate for a photo session.  You are welcome to include your business card for advertisement.  Anything, anything at all would be appreciated. (It just has to be new stuff) Plus- it's a tax write off!  I am happy to design a gift certificate for any services you might like to offer as well.  Please feel free to pass this information on to anyone else you might know who may be willing to donate something. THANK YOU!

click here to learn more about the CJC

click here to purchase tickets ($75 per person)

click here to donate something ( you may need to click the 'next' button at the bottom of the page.)