05-04-2025
‘Bonded by Blue' event raises awareness for Child Abuse Prevention month
BAY COUNTY, Fla. (WMBB) – April is Child Abuse Prevention Month, and law enforcement and child protection professionals are raising awareness at their 4th annual 'Bonded by Blue' event.
The Gulf Coast Children's Advocacy Center sees 60 to 80 child abuse cases a month. They do anything from forensic interviews to victim advocacy to specialized trauma therapy. Child protection is a group effort, they work with the Department of Children and Families, Northwest Florida Health Network, and local law enforcement on cases.
The team is on call 24/7, handling traumatic cases of child abuse.
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'We deal with some really complex trauma, and we try as a system of care to do things like today that have fun music, barbecue, and to do things outside of talk about tough cases. But we often also offer therapeutic interventions for free for our team,' Gulf Coast Children's Advocacy Center CEO Lori Allen said.
'We all have our why's. Why we do what we do. It's a tireless profession; certainly not people that are in the profession for the money. But the change in the outcomes that I see for children is the why for a lot of people,' Northwest Florida Health Network Circuit 14 Administrator Kelly Faircloth said.
To report a case of suspected child abuse, call the Florida Abuse Hotline at 1-800-962-2873.
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