There’s an Irish Proverb that states
“Everything will be alright in the end.
If it’s not alright, it’s not the end.”
WHAT’S HAPPENING?
BECAUSE CHILDREN MATTER
April is Child Abuse Prevention Month – a time set aside to recognize that protecting children is not just the responsibility of families or professionals, but of an entire community.
Across the country, organizations like Prevent Child Abuse America use April to raise awareness about the importance of prevention, early intervention, and strong family support systems. The message is simple but powerful: Child abuse is preventable when communities work together!
Prevention does not always look like something dramatic like calling 911 or the hotline. Prevention can look like:
- A neighbor offering to help a stressed out parent
- Teachers, coaches and church leaders recognizing signs of trauma and responding with care
- Mental health services
- Parenting education
- Safe spaces where children can speak freely.
At Voices of Courage, prevention also means ensuring that when abuse is disclosed, children have immediate access to trained forensic interviewers and trauma-focused therapy – at no cost to their families.
Healing is part of prevention. When children receive support early, the long-term impacts of trauma can be reduced.
This April, we invite you to be part of prevention. How?
- Learn the signs of abuse
- Reach out to a family who may need encouragement
- Share resources in your workplace, school or faith community
- Wear blue to show your commitment to protecting children
Every child deserves to grow up safe, supported and believed. During Child Abuse Prevention Month – and all year long – we remain committed to creating a community where children can thrive.
Protecting children is not just a cause. It’s our collective responsibility.
THE MORE YOU KNOW
WHAT HAPPENS DURING A FORENSIC INTERVIEW?
When a child is referred to our agency for a forensic interview, you might be wondering what they actually do when they get here.
Our process actually begins before the child ever enters the building with our Advocate. But, that’s a topic for another article.
When the family arrives at our facility for the child’s interview, they are greeted at the front desk, then they meet our Child & Family Advocate. They talk about any issues and provide a tour so that both the child and the caregivers know where each other will be during this process.
Next, they will meet the forensic interviewer. This is a specially trained professional who will be conducting the developmentally appropriate and legally sound interview with the child.
The interviewer’s role is to gather information in a way that is non-leading, neutral, trauma-informed, and fact-finding (not therapeutic). Therefore, they will greet the family but will mostly only interact with the child.
After some time of greeting, the interviewer will ask the child if they are ready to begin. If so, they will walk together to the interview room (which the child has already seen during the tour). The interviewer follows a structured protocol, using open-ended questions to gather information. They avoid suggestive or repetitive questioning and ensure a child-friendly, safe environment.
The interview is video/audio recorded. We do this for multiple reasons.
- To reduce trauma: The goal is to record the interview so that the child only has to share the experience one time (up until trial if that happens). Investigators can review the recording rather than asking the child to repeat painful details multiple times.
2. To preserve accuracy: A recording captures the exact words, tone, and nonverbal cues. This protects against misinterpretation or reliance on memory-based summaries. It is a clear, objective account of what was said.
3. To protect the process: A recording provides us the ability to demonstrate that the questions asked were developmentally appropriate, the interviewer did not lead or suggest answers, and proper protocols were followed.
4. To support the Multidisciplinary Team (MDT): Our model requires a team approach. Team members can observe live, or later review, the interview, allowing for coordinated decision-making without additional questioning of the child.
What a forensic interview is NOT:
It is NOT an interrogation, and our interviewer is not an investigator.
It is NOT a therapy session (though they are trauma-informed)
Interviewer is NOT an advocate, or one “side”.
Their responsibility is to the facts and to the child’s well-being.
The interview plays a critical role in reducing trauma, strengthening cases when appropriate, and ensuring children are heard in a safe and supportive setting.
Voices of Courage conducted 530 forensic interviews in 2025.
FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
The Test of Who We Are
“The test of the morality of a society is what it does for its children.”
This quote is from Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who was a German theologian and anti-Nazi dissident. Basically, what any society does for (or to) its children is a reflection of the overall morality of the society. Sometimes the quote is used in relation to a broader sentiment, one that says the current generation has responsibility for the next generation.
Let’s not get too deep into philosophy though. I am just talking about basic human responsibility for the vulnerable among us – children.
Children do not choose the circumstances into which they are born. They rely on adults, our systems, and their communities to ensure their safety, dignity and opportunities for the future.
As I have stated before, kids aren’t just relying on their family – and in many cases, thank goodness! They are relying on all of us, the members of their community.
And our response matters. Why? Because children matter. Their health and welfare matters. Their safety matters.
Every time our community chooses to invest in prevention, intervention and healing, we are answering that moral test referred to in Bonhoeffer’s quote. We are saying that children deserve to be believed. They deserve to be protected.
This moral test is ongoing. It calls for us to ask these things:
- Are we creating safe environments where children can speak up?
- Are we supporting families before stress becomes crisis?
- Are we ensuring that every child has access to care?
When we stand together for children, we strengthen the foundation of our community. All throughout 2026, we are going to be asking you – our community – to stand with us against child abuse. We are going to ask you to choose courage, compassion and action in order to ensure child safety.
How can we do this together? Choose to be a safe adult. Choose to make a hotline call, showing compassion for a child over your fear of making a report. Help us raise awareness by talking about child abuse even when it’s uncomfortable because the thing is, it’s always going to be uncomfortable.
Melissa Birdsell
A community that protects its children
protects its future.
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
MYTH VS. FACT
Over the next few newsletters, we are going to post a few common myths about child abuse, then talk about facts. We want to dispel some myths related to child abuse because myths can be harmful. Facts keep children safe.
MYTH: Child abuse only happens in certain types of families.
FACT: Child abuse crosses every boundary – income level, education, neighborhood, race, faith tradition, and family structure. There is no single “profile” of a family where abuse occurs. It can happen anywhere.
One of the most harmful misconceptions about child abuse is that it only affects “other people”. When we believe that abuse is limited to certain communities, we lower our guard in our own. We may overlook warning signs. We may hesitate to ask questions. We may assume, “That doesn’t happen here.” That’s dangerous because it leaves children vulnerable.
The reality is that stress, untreated trauma, substance misuse, isolation, and lack of support can impact families in every zip code. Abuse is not a reflection of a neighborhood’s appearance or a family’s public image.
WHY IT MATTERS: When we understand that child abuse is not confined to one type of family, we become more attentive, more compassionate, and more willing to act. Prevention begins with awareness – and awareness begins by challenging assumptions.
Protecting children is not about pointing fingers. It’s about strengthening families, increasing access to support, and ensuring that when a child speaks up, they are heard and believed.
#itisyourbusiness Missouri Child Abuse & Neglect Hotline 800-392-3738