WISCONSIN — Child abuse continues to be a public health issue across the state. There were 73,177 referrals from reporters alleging maltreatment of children in 2022, according to the Wisconsin Department of Children and Families (DCF).
In that 2022 report, neglect, physical, sexual and emotional abuse were the most common type of maltreatment allegation.
Safe Families for Children is one organization aiming to combat maltreatment. It was created for parents and kids going through a crisis, with a goal to stabilize and keep families together and out of foster care.
Aly Olson is the community engagement coordinator with the faith-based nonprofit Safe Families for Children, which works with families in the Fox Valley and surrounding counties.
Olson said the organization’s goal is to help prevent the cycle of abuse by supporting families going through hard times, be it financial, emotional, or social. She said they offer a team of volunteers to help.
“Safe Families really tries to fill that gap with providing that one-on-one connection between families in your community who need help and people who are willing to do it. And it might just be, you know, Sue and Bob, who live four houses down, who can pick up your daughter after school because you have a counseling appointment,” Olson said.
Betsy Borns is the director of Safe Families for Children. Borns said mental health issues, stress and lack of support can be some of the contributing factors to child abuse.
“When a family is struggling, especially when they’re isolated, and they don’t have people to help them, 99% of who we’re working with are single moms, and a lot of times they just they don’t even have one person that they can call to babysit their child or to help them with a transportation need and that’s what we’re really trying to create,” Borns said. “We’re trying to create community around people.”
Borns said helping with these needs as well as offering emotional support takes some of the pressure off parents.
She said Safe Families is helping more than 100 children and 30 families stay together and out of the system.
“The biggest trauma for children is getting taken away from their families, no matter what situation they’re in. So, if we can prevent that, that’s what we’re trying to do,” Borns said.
Addiction shadowed Olson’s family growing up, despite the fact that she said she had a happy childhood thanks to community help. Olson said she knows first-hand the importance of support. That’s why she said she volunteers at Safe Families.
She recalled one specific case she was involved in.
“I first met the mom. She has a 5-year-old, a 1-year-old, and then she was pregnant with twins and was going to be giving birth and didn’t have anybody she could trust to watch the kids while she was in the hospital. So, we ended up hosting her 1-year-old while she was at the hospital giving birth,” Olson said.
Olson said supporting parents and kids during tough times is just one of the great rewards in her career.
“It brings me a lot of joy, obviously, but really, I think the best part for me about working with families is that I also gain a friendship,” Olson said.