April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month, and Casa Central joined thousands of communities in putting children first. This year’s closing ceremony was held this past Tuesday in front of Casa Central’s main building.

Pinwheels were given to Community Service Center children and President and CEO Ann Alvarez shared a powerful message about the agency’s efforts in engaging the community in this important matter. Under this year’s theme, “Every Child Matters: Get Involved!” the Intact Family Program prepared a series of messages to mobilize the community and to raise awareness to promote the prevention of child abuse.

Intact Family Services is a family preservation program that allows children to remain safely at home, rather than be placed in substitute care. The program stabilizes at-risk families who have been referred by the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services. “The safety of the children in our community is a shared responsibility,” said Ann Alvarez, president and CEO of Casa Central. “We all play a part in caring for, protecting, and supporting our children and families.”

Casa Central hopes that this awareness campaign will celebrate and enhance our continued efforts to support and transform our communities into places that care about, and actively support, children and families. For further information about Casa Central, visit www.casacentral.org.