Secrets can be fun, whimsical thoughts that girlfriends share with each other about a crush or who their new best friend is. Most of these secrets are harmless and can help establish a long and trusting friendship for life. However, many young girls will keep bigger, more important secrets private for fear of losing a friend if it ever got out. This is what little Katie was faced with when her best friend Lisa shared with her a big secret, a dangerous secret. Lisa told Katie she was sexually abused by her uncle one evening after she had gone to bed. Katie knew she needed to tell an adult but was afraid her best friend would hate her. Meanwhile, Lisa felt scared and confused and had been struggling with her emotions for a long time. She was having a hard time focusing at school and often felt angry.

Katie saw her friend hurting and found the courage to help her friend by telling an adult. Once Lisa's secret was out, her parents were able to support her and keep her safe. They brought Lisa to the Center for Child Protection to share what happened. Now, Lisa and her family will have the information they need about what will happen with the investigation, and she will be able to address her feelings and concerns with a skilled therapist. Lisa and Katie are still best friends and have an even stronger friendship than they did before. Although Katie told Lisa's secret, she did the best thing a friend could do, and that was to ask for help when a friend was in need. *Names and other identifying circumstances have been changed to protect the privacy of children and families.

Rosemary Nelson is a victim services counselor with the Austin Police Department, where she does crisis counseling and intensive follow-up surrounding child abuse investigations. She primarily works with adolescents and teens ages 13 and over, and many of the teens she works with speak Spanish. Asked how she was drawn to this line of work, she responded, "I was drawn to this field because I wanted to work with children and because I realized that there are not many people who can work with child abuse victims on a daily basis. I felt that if I am one of those people who can provide compassion to child abuse victims and their families during such a difficult time, that this is the type of work I'm meant to be doing." Rosemary collaborates with police officers, Child Protective Services, and the District Attorney's office on a daily basis. "Collaborating with other team members can make a significant difference in the child's willingness to provide information about the abuse," she says.

Teenagers have a lot more knowledge of what is at stake during abuse investigations and do not always see themselves as victims, at first. That is why children may not immediately tell someone or act differently after being victimized. "Despite parent's efforts to talk to their children about what they should do if they are abused in any way, there are still countless reasons and barriers that children face when deciding to tell someone about their abuse," explains Rosemary. "Child abuse victims often trust their abuser and children are also very resilient thus making it sometimes difficult for others to detect or see some of the warning signs that abuse is occurring." Adolescents are always worried about what other people think and "everything is so big to them." For this reason, it is important to establish rapport to educate them about the investigative process, counsel them about their fears and concerns, and continue to follow-up with teens. After the investigation has been turned over to prosecution, Rosemary still has teens who keep in touch with her. "It's important to leave the door open for them throughout the process so if they need help, they can turn to someone they know and trust."

Join KB Home, The Austin NFL Alumni and Lexus of Austin for a spectacular day of golf, benefiting the Center for Child Protection on Friday, June 20, at the Hills Country Club. The 6th Annual NFL Alumni Golf Classic will feature four-person teams captained by a former NFL player competing for a trip to the 2009 NFL Alumni Super Bowl of Golf. The festivities kick off the evening before on June 19, at the Caring for Kids Banquet to be held at the Texas Disposal Systems Exotic Game Ranch and Pavilion. Check out the new sponsorship opportunities available, and sign up soon because this tournament sells out each year. Make plans to attend today. For more information, contact Development Associate Emily Jansen at 512-472-1164 x240 or ejansen@centerforchildprotection.org.

We appreciate 3M for their generous support of the Center's new Family Empowerment series of parenting classes.
Thanks go to the team of volunteers who attended Court School this month and kept things running smoothly - Thank you, Don Gavina, Bob Gorny, Lana Lyons, Tracey Lazorik, and David McCall.
We welcome our new team of volunteers who recently completed the Center's 12-hour volunteer training. Welcome Kelli Hejl, Rakhee Patel, Jackie Habersham, Cody Sigel, Liz Marcum, Kasey Bourbon, Cecily Feerick, Rebecca King, Kathryn Vaughan, Christian Swanson, Jessica Montgomery, Brittany Burch, Barbara Love, Beverly Ray, Mary Ellen Christian, Irene Sherman, and Marinell Traylor.