Putnam Child Advocacy Center Names 2022 Champion For Children

from the Putnam County Government

The Child Advocacy Center of Putnam County and the Friends of Putnam Child Advocacy Center are proud to present the sixth annual Champions for Children Breakfast.

This event will take place in person at the Barn at Tilly Foster Farm located at 100 N-312 in Brewster on Thursday, April 20th, 2022 at 8:00 am. The breakfast will feature internationally known speaker Jim Holler who has over 30 years of law enforcement experience and specializes in crimes against children.

This year’s Champion for Children is Dawn Mullins. Dawn has served the children of Putnam County as the Coordinator of Children’s Mental Health Services for over 20 years and continues to play a crucial role in providing families with mental health resources and services. Dawn’s expertise, compassion, tenacity, and warmth have helped countless children and families in Putnam County.

Admission is $30. Tickets and additional information are available online here.

April is Child Abuse Prevention Month. Putnam County has several initiatives to recognize child abuse is preventable. To kick off the month and promote awareness, the CAC is encouraging everyone to wear blue on April 1st. The Putnam County Courthouse will be lit blue and The Child Advocacy Center’s “Pinwheels for Prevention” campaign will run throughout the month. “Pinwheels are a happy and uplifting token of childhood,” said CAC Program Coordinator Marla Behler. “They are meant to convey that every child deserves the chance to be raised in a healthy, safe and nurturing environment.” The CAC will continue its tradition of planting the large community pinwheel garden on Friday, April 1st at 3:00 PM in front of the Sybil Ludington Statue at Lake Gleneida on Route 6 in Carmel, across from St. James Church. Volunteers are welcome to join in planting the garden. This year, Putnam schools will join the campaign; look for pinwheel gardens on their campuses.

“The Child Advocacy Center is a program of the Putnam County Department of Social Services. The CAC has long advocated that education is imperative to preventing child abuse and continues to partner with local agencies to implement innovative programs to ensure the physical, mental, and emotional health and wellbeing of the children of Putnam County,” said Commissioner Michael J. Piazza Jr. “Awareness and education programs promote the importance of early and comprehensive prevention of abuse, not just response after it occurs.”

For more information on child abuse prevention programs call the Child Advocacy Center of Putnam County at (845) 808-1400.

This press release was produced by the Putnam County Government. The views expressed here are the author’s own.