The Driving Force for WE CAN.
"Through the generosity of the community the program is able to sustain itself",said Mary Anderson,volunteer coordinator.

Mrs. Anderson has been behind the desk since day one of the program. She also holds an annual flag raising ceremony to bring awareness to the children who died because of abuse, neglect, violence or other preventable causes.

Key Facts about Child Abuse and Neglect

An estimated 3,154,000 children were reported to child protective service agencies as alleged victims of child abuse or neglect in 1998, and approximately one million of these reports were confirmed.
Approximately three children died each day in the United States from abuse or neglect in 1997.
While the nation’s overall crime rate fell 22 percent from 1993 to 1997, reports of child abuse and neglect grew by 8 percent and confirmed cases increased 4 percent.
During the period 1993-1997, Prevent Child Abuse America estimates that over 5,000 children died from abuse or neglect in the United States.
Forty-five out of 1,000 children were reported as abused or neglected and 14 children out of 1,000 were confirmed as abused or neglected in 1998.
Fifty-one percent of the reported cases in 1998 involved neglect, while 25 percent involved physical abuse, 10 percent involved sexual abuse, 3 percent involved emotional abuse and 11 percent were related to other forms of child maltreatment.
One-half of all Americans believe child abuse and neglect is the most important public health issue facing this country, compared to other public health issues like drug and alcohol abuse, heart disease, cancer and HIV/AIDS.
Copyright ©2000 Prevent Child Abuse America. All rights reserved.
200 S. Michigan Avenue, 17th Floor, Chicago, IL 60604-2404
phone 312-663-3520; fax 312-939-8962

Children's Memorial Flag Calls Attention To Child Deaths In U.S.
The United States leads the world in homicides against children and youth under age 15, accounting for 73 percent of all homicides-and 54 percent of all suicides-of children from birth to age 15 in the world's top 26 industrialized countries. The causes include guns, motor vehicles and child abuse. To call attention to the shamefully high number of preventable deaths of children in the U.S., the Child Welfare League of America (CWLA) promotes display of the Children's Memorial Flag at any time that a child dies from violence and throughout April, which is Child Abuse Prevention Month.

The Children's Memorial Flag depicts linked silhouettes of children, with one missing from the chain. As in past years, it will be flown over buildings across the country on the fourth Friday of April, and at others times when a child or teen dies violently.

Over the past few years, the fourth Friday of April has come to be known as Children's Memorial Day, when agencies and organizations remember children lost to violence and promote action needed to stop preventable deaths of children, whatever their causes. These include protecting children from guns by unloading and locking guns and ammunition separately, strengthening child protection services, providing after-school programs as safe havens for all children, and funding drug treatment for addicted parents.

The idea for a special children's flag originated in Alameda County, CA, when an elected official envisioned it as a stirring way of gaining public attention for the issue of violence against children. CWLA expanded the initiative into a national one, asking the governors of all 50 states and the Mayor of the District of Columbia to fly the flag on the fourth Friday of April as a way of acknowledging needless child deaths and committing to do more to protect children.

This past April, on the fourth Friday of the month, 34 governors, several mayors, numerous organizations and lots of local groups and agencies participated by flying the flag, arranging special ceremonies, convening representatives of groups that are committed to protect children, and heightening public awareness of the need for communities to help vulnerable children and families.

In addition, many national organizations helped promote the Children's Memorial Flag with their affiliates and chapters, among them United Way, National League of Cities, National District Attorneys Association, National Association of Social Workers, National 4-H Center, American Psychological Association, and National Mental Health Association. Many of CWLA's more than 1,100 member agencies also fly the flag.


CWLA is a 80-year-old association of public and private, nonprofit agencies that help abused, neglected, abandoned and otherwise vulnerable children and youth and their families. This nonpartisan organization is a leading child advocate and works for federal legislation to improve life for children, especially those who are at risk. To order the Children's Memorial Flag, which is available in two sizes, visit the Giftables webpage at www.cwla.org/pubs or call 800/ASK-CWLA.

Child Abuse.com
For more info, Please click here

Child Welfare League of America
Click here for more on the flag ceremony