It is with great disappointment and heavy hearts that Missouri KidsFirst is canceling the Pinwheels for Prevention Ceremony for tomorrow, April 17, 2013. This decision was not an easy one to make. Missouri KidsFirst feels that for the safety and well being of all participants and volunteers that we must take this step to cancel the ceremony.

The Child Advocacy Center in Sullivan has planted a Pinwheel Garden at the Franklin County Courthouse in Union.

Communities statewide recognize that we all play a role in healthy child development and the prevention of child abuse and neglect. During April, Child Abuse Prevention Month, 28 communities are being recognized for their exemplary leadership in accepting the responsibility of child abuse prevention and taking steps to protect children in their communities. The 2013 Leaders in Child Abuse Prevention are:

• Annie Malone Children and Family Service Center-St. Louis
• Camden County Child Advocacy Council-Camdenton
• CASA of South Central Missouri-Rolla
• Child Abuse Prevention Association (CAPA)-Independence
• Children’s Haven of Southwest Missouri, Inc.-Joplin
• Children’s Home Society of Missouri (CHS)-St. Louis
• Columbia/Boone County Department of Public Health and Human Services-Healthy Babies Program-Columbia
• Fathers’ Support Center-St. Louis
• Foster & Adoptive Care Coalition of Greater St. Louis
• Jewish Family & Children’s Service-Child Abuse Prevention Program-St. Louis City & County and St. Charles County
• Kansas City Child Abuse Roundtable Coalition-Metro Kansas City
• Metropolitan Organization to Counter Sexual Assault (MOCSA)-Kansas City
• Community Child Development Center-Macon
• Marygrove-St. Louis
• Mississippi County Caring Communities-East Prairie
• Missouri CASA Association-Columbia
• Mother-to-Mother-Stoddard County
• Nurses for Newborns-St. Louis
• Pemiscot County Initiative Network/Families Support Project-Caruthersville
• Phelps County Child Advocacy Network (PCCAN)-Rolla
• Project COPE of Jefferson County Community Partnership-Barnhart
• Putting Kids First Coalition-Columbia
• Saint Louis Crisis Nursery-St. Louis
• St. Louis Family & Community Partnership-St. Louis
• Southwest Missouri Community Alliance-Joplin
• Springfield “Every Child Series”–Springfield News-Leader
• The Child Center-Wentzville, Hannibal & Memphis
• The Community Partnership-Rolla

The communities will be recognized for their achievements during the Pinwheels for Prevention^TM Community Pinwheel Garden Ceremony at noon on April 17, 2013 at the State Capitol. The Missouri Prevention Partners believe that child abuse can be prevented and each of us has a role to play to help children live free from abuse and neglect.

The Missouri Prevention Partners is a collaboration of statewide public and private nonprofit organizations that have an interest in and statewide perspective of child abuse and its prevention. Learn more about the Missouri Prevention Partners at http://missourikidsfirst.org/?page_id=8176

Click here for more information about the Pinwheels for Prevention^TM Community Pinwheel Garden Ceremony at noon on April 17, 2013 at the State Capitol please visit: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Missouri-KidsFirst/132392254931?sk=wall

Today, March 29, 2013, benevolent tax credit legislation sponsored by Sen. Bob Dixon, R-Springfield (Senate Bills 20, 15 and 19) were signed into law by Governor Nixon. Effective immediately, the law renews or extends several benevolent tax credit programs, including the Champion for Children Tax Credit (formerly the Children in Crisis Tax Credit). For this tax credit which had expired previously, contributions to Child Advocacy Centers and other organizations made on or after Jan. 1, 2013 are now eligible for the renewed tax credits.

Missouri KidsFirst will be hosting the 4th Annual Pinwheels for Prevention Community Pinwheel Garden at the State Capitol on Wednesday, April 17, 2013. We invite anyone committed to the well-being of children and preventing child abuse to sponsor a pinwheel in the garden. Learn how to sponsor a pinwheel.

The Stepehens College Kappa Delta’s invite you to participate in their annual Shamrock 5K Walk/Run at 1 PM on Saturday, March 9, 2013 at the Stephens Lake Park in Columbia, MO. Register Today! Don’t miss the fun!

There are 22 accredited Child Advocacy Centers in Missouri that serve every county in the state. Read how a child advocacy center could have brought to light the crimes of Jerry Sandusky’s a decade earlier.

The Child Center, Inc will host its 9th annual Prevention and Interventions Conference on April 24-26, 2013 in St. Peters. Download the Conference Brochure and Registration Information.

The Prevention and Interventions Conference provides training in April every year for professionals who work with victims of abuse and their families.  This conference includes multiple workshops conducted by nationally and locally recognized professionals.  Concentration areas focus on a range of areas including prevention, domestic violence, child welfare, medical, and mental health.

The Children’s Trust Fund invites you to participate in a statewide child abuse and neglect prevention conference April 2-4, 2013 at the Capital Plaza Hotel in Jefferson City, MO. You won’t want to miss the opportunity to hear prominent national speakers including Dr. Robert W. Block, M.D., Immediate Past President of the American Academy of Pediatrics; Jeff Linkenbach, Ed.D., Montana State University; Robert Sege, M.D., Boston Medical Center; Rev. Starsky D. Wilson, Deaconess Foundation; and motivational speaker John O’Leary from Rising Above! Register Now! Download the conference brochure!

The Missouri Prevention Partners invites communities to submit a short application outlining efforts taken to prevent child abuse and neglect that you believe should be recognized in your community.