Over A Thousand Pinwheels Adorn Norristown SEPTA In Child Abuse Awareness Campaign

NORRISTOWN, PA — More than a thousand pinwheels adorned the grassy knoll outside the Norristown Transportation Center Monday in a symbolic gesture of solidarity with the rising number of child abuse victims in the local area.

Organizers hope the pinwheels, planted by local nonprofit Mission Kids Child Advocacy Center and SEPTA, raise awareness for the need to provide children with safe and healthy environments.

“Every one of those pinwheels represents a real child who is working every day to heal from something truly life-altering, that was never their fault,” Leslie Slingsby, Mission Kids’ Chief Executive Officer of Services and Operations said in a statement.

Mission Kids investigated a total of 1,206 cases of suspected child abuse cases in 2022. The nonprofit worked with nearly 10,000 children on prevention education in 11 of Montgomery County's 22 public school districts.

Their programs bring together law enforcement, child protective services, and trauma therapists to provide caregivers and victims with more support resources.

"The pinwheel represents what every child should have— the chance to experience the joy and innocence of childhood, to laugh and to play without the fear of physical or sexual abuse," Mission Kids added.

Pinwheels will remain on display through the end of April. The campaign coincides with National Child Abuse Prevention Month.

If you have a concern with a child's safety or well being, call Pennsylvania’s ChildLine at 1-800-932-0313.