DeWine, others honored for helping children in Allen County
Apr. 3—LIMA — Child Abuse Awareness Month is, as the name indicates, centered around deplorable actions taken by adults against children, subjecting the most vulnerable to abuse and neglect.
However, there is more to this month than just speaking out against child abuse. On Thursday, Allen County Children Services took time to celebrate those working to help victimized children and those who are overcoming their past to rebuild their families.
The celebration centered around the Community For Kids Luncheon on Thursday at Ohio Means Jobs Allen County, an event attended by representatives of numerous area and state agencies as well as Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, who was honored as one of the winners of the Friends of Children Award, an honor given to individuals and organizations going above and beyond to protect vulnerable children.
"In 2o24, one in 13 children in our county were served by Allen County Children Services due to abuse and neglect," Allen County Children Services Executive Director Sarah Newland said. "It is all of you in this room that have ensured that these children are not just a number or a statistic, but are young lives that matter and deserve to be protected."
DeWine was honored for his efforts to support children services agencies throughout the state in areas such as foster care, kinship care and adoption services, as well as advocating for victimized children during his time as a prosecutor and legislator, both at the state and federal level.
"Many times, children's issues are ignored. There's not much constituency there. They don't vote," he said. "We worry about those that are making the most noise, and kids sometimes aren't paid attention to. So I tried to look around during my career and figure out where I can make a difference."
With the Ohio General Assembly working on forming the next state biennial budget, DeWine asked those in attendance to advocate for children's programs when reaching out to their legislators, including some proposals that DeWine has made in this area. These include a $1,000 tax credit for lower-income working families for every child under the age of 7.
"They can use that money for groceries, they can use for help in regard to childcare to help parents who are working, for example," DeWine said. "It will really help these families who are our working poor. They're out there. They're hustling, and they're doing everything they can to support their family."
Others honored at the lunch included Kerri Kelly, the winner of the Family of the Year Award. Kelly was honored for her work in overcoming substance addiction and becoming part of her children's lives again while also obtaining an education to become a certified medical dependency counselor.
Other winners of the Friends of Children Award were:
—George Cox, Spencerville VFW Clown Unit
—Dave and Barb Rasor, builders of bunk beds for children in the system
—Carole Enneking, Coordinator for the Allen County Family and Children First Council
—Jill Ackerman, Lima schools superintendent
—Kara Wente, director, Ohio Department of Children and Youth
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