Child Safety Tips

People that know me know that I am a huge child advocate. I like to help ALL victims and can appreciate even what adult victims have to endure, but I especially want to help children. Children have no voice or choice in these matters. Children need empowerment in order to protect themselves and in order for us to help protect them. So, with that being said, I am posting about child safety and trying to give you my helps in case this is something you have been meaning to do and just haven't taken the time to research it. Have this discussion with your children today! And, continue it as part of your lifestyle. (Just like the sex talk!)

Last week we had a joint FHE with Billy, Cham and their girls. We had a very nice and informative discussion about child safety and sexual abuse. It went VERY well and the kids are so amazing. They had great discussions and answers to questions. We used the program that they use in some of the schools here in Utah called "Good Touch, Bad Touch" and it is a great program. Here is the site if anyone is interested: http://www.childhelp.org/gtbt. Click on "safety at home." (On a side note, if your school does not yet have this program, you should really try to get it going!) I also used a sharing time written by the Primary general board back in 1987. It was a little outdated and lacked a ton of information, but provided me with a general guideline. I also used some of the information from the beginning of the Wolf scout handbook as they have some scenarios that are helpful. There are a couple of DVD's you can order to help with this subject. One is through the childhelp.org site and the other is here: "The B-Safe Video helps children ages four to eleven learn to say "No." It can be obtained from Citadel Broadcasting, 434 Bearcat Dr., Salt Lake City, Utah 84114, $7.00. It teaches children how to avoid being picked up by a stranger and encourages them to "tell" if there has ever been any form of sexual abuse." (This information maybe outdated as I have not attempted to obtain the video but, I plan to shortly. Will update you when I find out.)

Those of you that know me, also know that I am a huge fan of Dr. Phil. He is also a huge child advocate. So, those of you that can't stand him, put away your feelings for a moment and read this. (Also, I want to know why people hate him so much, but that can be for another post.) I watched one of his shows about child abductions and decided to also post the link to the top five tips for parents to keep your children safe. Please check it out. Also, he reminds us to always be aware and if we suspect something with neighbors or others, we need to call the police. Let them try to investigate it and if we are wrong...no big deal. It's better to error on the side of the child...ALWAYS!!! In the Shawn Hornbeck case, one neighbor saw Shawn 7 months after his kidnapping, but never called police and other neighbors heard screaming and crying and never called.

And last but not least, there is a movie coming out this month called "Gardens of the Night." It is a movie about kidnapping and it is a "must see" for parents. I do not WANT to see this movie because I know it will leave me feeling sick and disgusted and discouraged. But, I know it's necessary and along with all that yucky stuff is the knowledge to protect. And knowledge is power. We, as parents, need to see how predators are getting a hold of our children. We need to get fully plugged in and do whatever we can reasonably do to protect. This movie was done by Tom Arnold and it will probably make you hate him after watching it. He says on the Dr. Phil show that this character that he plays is created after a man who abused him as a child. He thought the man was his friend and was always so friendly, etc. So, it's time for parents to take action! Today is the day to take that action. Today is the day to get plugged in! And, while you're at it, pass it on!