Bishops’ Child Protection Office Shares Messages Children Hear In Safe Environment Programs

WASHINGTON — As schools launch a new academic year, millions of children also are set to learn the ABC’s of child protection. In Catholic schools and parishes nationwide, safe environment training gives children the skills necessary to protect themselves from would be-offenders. Mary Jane Doerr, associate director of the Secretariat for Child and Youth Protection of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), has listed here some of the messages children hear in safe environment programs.

1. Abuse is never a child’s fault, a point that children need to hear over and over again.Offenders try hard to make children feel complicit in the abuse or to blame them for the abuse.  Children learn that that is never true! The blame always belongs to the adult who is taking advantage of a child’s trust and vulnerabilities.
2. God loves children forever and wants them to live holy and happy lives. If a child has been abused, that child learns they are still innocent and loved by God and their families. The shame of child sexual abuse needs to be put where it belongs: on the abuser.
3. Abuse that has happened should be reported. Children learn to tell a parent or another trusted adult if someone is hurting them and to keep telling until they are believed. One study shows that children tell of their abuse an average of nine times before someone believes them. Parents can help children learn whom they can trust by pointing out the adults who can be trusted. Parents can also teach children the correct names of private body parts. This simple step gives children the vocabulary to tell others what happened to them.
4. You can recognize abuse when it happens. Children learn to trust that feeling that says something isn’t right and to tell a parent or other trusted adult when something happens that makes them feel uneasy. Children learn to question if someone is telling them to do what the child doesn’t like but says it is because he loves the child. Children learn to tell parents or trusted adult if another person makes them sad or confused or tries to get them to break rules. This can stop the process of grooming by which an abuser lures a child toward danger. A child who questions another’s inappropriate behavior can send a message to the offender that this child is not an easy target, but one that will tell what is being done to him/her.
5.  There are ways to spot a grooming process. Offenders are willing to spend a great deal of time grooming the family, the child and even the community so they may be seen as a trusted family friend. Children learn that anyone who lets children break rules, gives them alcohol or shows them pornography needs to be reported to parents and other trusted adults. Children learn not to keep secrets from parents. They learn that they should tell parents when someone gives them special gifts or is always touching them or tickling them and says not to tell.
6. Parents or other trusted adults will talk about this subject. Children often try to protect their parents from bad news, so they need to learn they can tell their parents anything. This lesson is conveyed when parents stay involved in their children’s activities and talk with them about what is happening in their lives. This is how children learn what can be shared with parents. The more effective safe environment programs include parents in the learning process. This gives the child a clear signal that this subject is not off limits but instead is something to be talked about with family members.
7. Boundaries exist. Learning about personal boundaries can protect children and their knowing boundaries reinforces the teaching to listen to one’s instincts. Children who listen to the voice that says, “This doesn’t feel right,” can protect themselves.
8. Children can stand up for themselves. Children need to be respectful and obey, yet at the same time need to know there are times when it is okay to say no to an adult. Children learn when it is appropriate for them to say, “No, stop doing that.” For example, they hear they can say no to someone who makes them uncomfortable, shows them pornography, or offers them alcohol.
9. There are ways to explain inappropriate behavior. Children learn how to describe what’s happening when someone is doing something that just seems a “little weird” even though it may not seem wrong. The ability to articulate what has happened to a child enables a child to more easily confide in a parent or other trusted adult. This can alert the adult to a potentially dangerous situation so it can be avoided. This is ultimately the goal of safe environment education.

Bishops' Delegation Finds Mission to Haiti both Disturbing and Hopeful

WASHINGTON — The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) sponsored a delegation July 26-August 2 to Haiti and the Caribbean region to examine the plight of Haitians impacted by the January 12 earthquake.  
          
The mission, led by Archbishop Thomas Wenski of Miami and Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio of Brooklyn, New York, took place a little more than six months after the tragedy and focused upon the situation of vulnerable populations, particularly children, as well as reconstruction and economic development efforts. The delegation also traveled to the Bahamas and the Dominican Republic to assess the problems facing Haitians in those countries.
          
“It is clear that efforts to clean up and recover from the earthquake are progressing slowly,” said Archbishop Wenski. “However, the international community must remain steadfast in working with the Haitian government to reconstruct the country and strengthen its institutions. The survival and long-term future of the Haitian people are at stake.”
          
In addition to visiting with members of Haiti’s government, civil society and business sectors to discuss long-term development, the delegation paid special attention to the most vulnerable Haitians, especially women and children, visiting orphanages and camps in Port-au-Prince and the other countries.
          
“Children, especially those who have lost parents or are separated from them, remain at grave risk,” said Bishop DiMarzio. “Without a more concerted effort to protect them and find long-term solutions for their care, they will become even more vulnerable to criminal elements, including smugglers and human traffickers.”
          
In some of the camps, the delegation found that women remain vulnerable to violence and sexual assault. “Women, especially single mothers with children, are struggling to feed and protect their families, but at the same time are themselves exposed to gender-based violence.  More must be done to enhance their security,” said Maria Odom, executive director of the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc (CLINIC) and member of the delegation. 
          
Despite the slow recovery and humanitarian challenges, the delegation saw seeds of hope in their mission. They visited a number of emergency, transitional, and development programs operated by Catholic Relief Services (CRS) and their local partners.  CRS has operated in Haiti for 55 years, responding to the needs of the most vulnerable and supporting local development and strengthening of Haitian families.         
          
In the aftermath of the earthquake, CRS additionally supports child protection programming, which includes family tracing to reunite separated children with their families, where possible, and the pursuit of durable solutions for orphaned children. CRS is also working throughout Haiti to assist the displaced located outside of the earthquake zone, and, through agriculture programs, to help them find the means to remain in the countryside.
          
Upon returning to the United States, the delegation recommended that several steps be taken by the U.S. government to help reunite and strengthen Haitian families and continue helping Haiti’s long-term development, including:

• Providing humanitarian parole to the family members, including children, of Haitians evacuated to the United States for medical treatment;
• Streamlining the process for post-earthquake arrivals applying for deferred action, so that they can work immediately in the United States and send remittances back to Haiti;
• Implementing a proactive asylum screening program for Haitians who are interdicted at sea, with appropriate adjudicators and language specialists aboard Coast Guard ships;
• Introducing best interest determinations for vulnerable children in shelters, which would include strengthened family tracing efforts; and
• Working with the Haitian government to increase their capacity to expedite clean up and reconstruction efforts and to provide security for Haitians, both in the earthquake area and along the border with the Dominican Republic;
• Working with the Haitian government to ensure the sustainable agricultural development of Haiti’s rural areas; and
• Working with the Haitian government to ensure the inclusion of civil society and the business sectors in efforts to decentralize the economy and the population’s access to jobs, health-care, and education services.

The delegation will be releasing a more formal and detailed report and recommendations in early September.  The delegation included staff representatives from Migration and Refugee Services and the Office of International Justice and Peace Office of the USCCB; the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. (CLINIC), and Catholic Relief Services.

“This is a pivotal moment in Haiti’s history which requires cooperation and patience,” stated Archbishop Wenski. “Haiti is at a crossroads and it is crucial that the international community not lessen its commitment to the rebuilding process.”

In a collection taken up after the earthquake, Catholics in the United States contributed $80 million to recovery efforts in Haiti, which is being used to provide human needs assistance and to help restore Haiti’s infrastructure, including churches, schools, and clinics. CRS and the Secretariat for the Church in Latin America of the USCCB are administering the funds, in consultation with the bishops of Haiti.

“It will take time to make Haiti whole again, but it is important that the Haitian people and the children of Haiti— its future leaders — do not lose hope,” concluded Archbishop Wenski.

All Saints only high school in Bay County to see its students perform above the national average on ACT in 2010

Read Andrew Dobson's report "Bay County ACT scores below national average, school officials say improvements on the horizon" from The Bay City Times:

"ACT scores for Bay County high schools were all below the national average of 21.1 for 2010, minus Bay City All Saints Central High School — the county’s only private high school — where students averaged 23.5 out of a possible 36 points."

U.S. Bishops President Cardinal George Decries Court Decision Striking Down California Marriage Law

WASHINGTON — Cardinal Francis George, President of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, decried the August 4 decision of a federal judge to overturn California voters' 2008  initiative that protected marriage as the union of one man and one woman.


“Marriage between a man and a woman is the bedrock of any society. The misuse of law to change the nature of marriage undermines the common good,” Cardinal George said. “It is tragic that a federal judge would overturn the clear and expressed will of the people in their support for the institution of marriage. No court of civil law has the authority to reach into areas of human experience that nature itself has defined.”


Joining Cardinal George in his criticism of the court decision was Archbishop Joseph Kurtz, Chair of the Ad Hoc Committee for the Defense of Marriage. 


Archbishop Kurtz noted that “Citizens of this nation have uniformly voted to uphold the understanding of marriage as a union of one man and one woman in every jurisdiction where the issue has been on the ballot.  This understanding is neither irrational nor unlawful,” he said. “Marriage is more fundamental and essential to the well being of society than perhaps any other institution. It is simply unimaginable that the court could now claim a conflict between marriage and the Constitution.”

St. John Vianney, Pray for Us

Today is the feast day of St. John Vianney, patron of priests. Please pray for our preists:

Bishop Joseph Cistone

Fr. Craig Albrecht

Fr. Todd Arnberg

Fr. Paul Bala

Fr. Gerald Balwinski

Fr. James Bessert

Fr. Richard  Bokinskie

Fr. Andrew Booms

Fr. William Bonnici

Fr. Andrzej Boroch

Fr. Edward Boucher

Fr. Robert Byrne

Fr. José Maria Cabrera

Fr. James Carlson

Fr. Nicholas Coffaro

Fr. Christopher  Coman

Fr. John Cotter

Fr. Robert DeLand

Fr. Jerzy Dobosz

Fr. Ronald Dombrowski

Fr. John Ederer

Fr. Donald Eppenbrock

Fr. James Falsey

Fr. Richard Filary

Fr. Stephen Fillion

Fr. James Fitzpatrick

Fr. T.J. Fleming

Fr. Joseph Friske II

Fr. Daniel Fox, OFM Cap

Fr. Peter Gaspeny

Fr. James Gavit

Fr. Steven Gavit

Fr. Robert  Gohm

Fr. Joseph Griffin

Fr. William  Gruden

Fr. Charles Hammond

Fr. Denis Heames

Fr. James Heller

Fr. Donald Henkes

Fr. Robert Howe

Fr. Patrick Jankowiak

Fr. Barney Janowicz

Fr. David Jenuwine

Fr. John  Johnson

Fr. Richard  Jozwiak

Fr. Loren Kalinowski

Fr. Frederick  Kawka

Fr. Randy Kelly

Fr. Kevin Kerbawy

Fr. George Klimas

Fr. Edward Konieczka

Fr. Thomas Kowalczyk

Fr. Dennis Kucharczyk

Fr. Ronald  LeFleur

Fr. Frederick Loos

Fr. Michael Maher

Fr. Kevin Maksym

Fr. John Mancini, OSFS

Fr. Emmet Marceau

Fr. Thomas McNamara

Fr. Robert Meissner

Fr. Joseph Miller

Fr. Raymond Moeggenberg

Fr. John Mullet

Fr. Osward Murungi, AJ

Fr. Thai Hung Nguyen

Fr. Jerome Niedermier

Fr. Peter Nwokoye

Fr. Patrick O’Connor

Fr. Dale Orlik

Fr. Robert Paré

Fr. José  Parra

Fr. David Parsch

Fr. Lawrence Pashak

Fr. Chester Pilarski

Fr. William Prospero, SJ

Fr. Daniel  Roa 

Fr. Joseph Roach

Fr. Noel Rudy

Fr. William Rutkowski

Fr. Reginaldo Solcedo

Fr. John Sarge

Fr. George Serour

Fr. Joseph Shabel

Fr. Robert Shine

Fr. Vernon Sierminski

Fr. Harold Sikorski

Fr. Bernard Skornia

Fr. William Spencer

Fr. Julius Spleet

Fr. Wolfgang Streichardt

Fr. Stanley Surman

Fr. Thomas Sutton

Fr. Christian Tabares

Fr. William  Taylor

Fr. John Thome

Fr. Prentice Tipton

Fr. Thomas Thompson

Fr. Brian Van Hove, SJ

Fr. Ricky Varner

Fr. Mason Vaughn

Fr. Francis Voris, OFM Cap

Fr. Ronald Wagner

Fr. John Weis

Fr. Michael Wolf

Fr. Kenneth Yaroch

Dear Lord,
we pray that the Blessed Mother
wrap her mantle around your priests
and through her intercession
strengthen them for their ministry.
We pray that Mary will guide your priests
to follow her own words,
“Do whatever He tells you” (Jn 2:5).
May your priests have the heart of St. Joseph,
Mary’s most chaste spouse.
May the Blessed Mother’s own pierced heart
inspire them to embrace
all who suffer at the foot of the cross.
May your priests be holy,
filled with the fire of your love
seeking nothing but your greater glory
and the salvation of souls.
Amen.
St. John Vianney, pray for us.

Check out the Center for Ministry's 2010-2011 Offerings

• The Center for Ministry has published its 2010-2010 registration guide for this coming season of retreats and enrichment opportunities. Check out the brochure online now!

• The August 2010 issue of the DoS News monthly newsletter is now online!