With the clock ticking ever closer to 2022, our thoughts are on the future: the future of children, protecting them, and how we as adults must stop child abuse before it happens. At Safe Shores, our Prevention and Outreach program works to do just that, every day. We know that safe and caring adults are the first lines of defense when protecting ...
Stories
Stories of Intervention, Hope, and Healing from 2021
It can be hard to be still with the hustle and bustle of the holidays, but there is power in quiet reflection on the past year. At Safe Shores, this reflection allows us to think about the children we have served, their stories, their healing, and how our supporters like you have helped to make that possible. We are currently “wrapping up” our ...
Hope Dissipates Fear – Liam’s Forensic Interview
At Safe Shores - The DC Children’s Advocacy Center, our Forensic Services program is made up of highly trained Forensic Interviewers who conduct neutral, fact-finding, and developmentally sensitive interviews with children affected by abuse or are witnesses to violence, on behalf of our MDT partner agencies. (Learn more about these agencies here.) ...
Annie Didn’t Know Who to Ask for Help
Teenage survivors of sexual assault have a new resource: Safe Shores’ Teen Advocates. While Safe Shores has always served child survivors from age zero to seventeen, the implementation of the Sexual Assault Victims Rights Act Amendment (SAVRAA) of 2019 gives us new tools for responding to adolescents’ unique needs in ways that respect their rights, ...
Even the Smallest of Things Can Bring Hope – Kay’s Experience at Safe Shores
A Family's First Point of Contact with Safe Shores Often the first point of contact a family has with Safe Shores is through our Client Advocacy program. Client Advocates provide a safe, welcoming environment for kids coming to Safe Shores, and help non-offending caregivers identify and access the resources they need to be supportive of the ...
Self-Care Tips for Children
When you hear the phrase “self-care,” what springs to mind? Bubble baths? Indulging in food and drink? Spa days and face masks? Recently, the act of self-care has become synonymous with self-indulgence, with brands latching onto the self-care craze as a way to sell their products. Real self-care looks wildly different. Self-care can be practiced by ...
When a Father Asked for Help
When 7-year-old Marcus’ father contacted Safe Shores, this devoted dad was desperately seeking support to help his precocious and once joy-filled son deal with intense fear and anxiety after witnessing a police-involved shooting. What had until then been the two of them watching nation-wide protests and media coverage of community injustices on a ...
Safe Shores’ November 2020 Newsletter – A Peek into How COVID-19 Has Impacted Our Work + More
This Year, Giving Has to Look Different, Because Our Clients’ Needs are Different As we all know, 2020 is no normal year. It has required Safe Shores to carry out our mission in new ways, and our annual Holiday Giving Drive is no different. We are still doing all our work remotely due to the coronavirus pandemic, and that means Holiday ...
Intervention, Hope, Healing, and Rainbows!
Thank you for your support of Safe Shores this year! With your help, so far we've come to the aid over 1,000 children and families in crisis. Take, for example, 12-year old Aisha, who witnessed the murder of her mother in their own home. Terrified and left alone, Aisha called 911 and frantically tried to resuscitate her mother. Tragically, it was ...
