Written by: John DeRousie, Custom Marketing Solutions
FULTON, NY – For adolescent survivors of sexual abuse, healing from this traumatic experience is often quite a difficult process.
However, in times like these the services offered through the Child Advocacy Center of Oswego County are able to provide the survivor with the tools necessary to expedite the healing process.
One of those tools is the upcoming “Darkness to Light Workshop” that will be held June 25 at the CAC offices, 301 Beech St.
Made possible through a mini-grant provided by the Oswego City-County Youth Bureau and the New York State Office of Children and Family Services, the “Darkness to Light Workshop” is designed to provide hope to adolescent survivors of sexual abuse by helping them develop a better understanding of the healing process.
“The devastating effects of sexual abuse permeate a child’s soul, often leaving shame, loneliness, and blame in its wake. The purpose of this workshop was to give survivors an opportunity to reframe their experiences through drama and art therapy, give the healing process another form, and allow the teens to connect with others who have experienced the same type of abuse,” said Executive Director of the CAC Karrie Damm.
Therapists from the CAC, Stacy Austin-Root, Melissa Baker, Carol Gazitano, Melanie Proper, and interns from SUNY Oswego and Syracuse University, will facilitate the “Darkness to Light Workshop”. The team of therapists will lead teens through an embodied verbal method and trauma-centered psychotherapy process.
“The therapists at the CAC do a wonderful job every day, and they are especially proud of the work they do with teens during this workshop every year. We are also thankful of the Oswego City-County Youth Bureau for affording us the opportunity to bring a unique healing experience to the youth as we continue our mission to protect and serve the abused children of Oswego County,” said Damm.
Established in 2001, The Child Advocacy Center of Oswego County is a non-profit charitable organization that provides a safe, child-friendly site for the investigation, prosecution and treatment of child abuse and offers a wide range of services to children who have been physically, sexually, or emotionally abused.
Working together with law enforcement investigators, child protective services, medical providers, therapeutic professionals, victim support professionals, the probation department, and the district attorney’s office, the CAC looks to maintain a well-coordinated, effective approach to child abuse investigation and prosecution, and service provision to families and individuals affected by child abuse.
For more information on services provided by the Child Advocacy Center, visit www.oswegocac.org or call Damm at 592-4453.
This is wonderful! But prevention may be the best cure. Accused pedophiles like Sylvain Kustyan, Ariel Castro, Jerry Sandusky, etc. must be stopped BEFORE they have years to prey upon innocent children. Castro and Sandusky are behind bars, but Kustyan, who has been formally charged with two counts each of 1st Degree Sodomy and Sexual Abuse of a ten-year-old little boy, fled the US to avoid imminent arrest. Kustyan, formerly of Tuscaloosa, Alabama and Hermin/ Mazingarbe, France is now a fugitive from the law. As the average pedophile has 300 different victims in their lifetime and the recidivism rate among pedophiles is virtually 100%, they must be apprehended ASAP!