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On May 16, CAC will host its first-ever symposium designed to "help the helpers." CAC knows firsthand the toll that the pandemic took (and continues to take) on frontline mental health and social service providers. With the goal of restoring personal well-being, CAC has planned a day of inspired learning and gentle self-care practices. Highly regarded, trauma-informed speakers include keynote presenter and former CAC mental health therapist Allison Stoll, along with Dr. Pamela Fullerton, Lisa Patterson Raterman and Jennifer Swets.
“Working with individuals who have experienced a traumatic event(s) can be challenging and emotionally taxing for service providers, increasing the risk for compassion fatigue, burnout and vicarious trauma,” said CAC’s CEO Melanie Pignotti. “Self-care training equips professionals with strategies and tools to manage their own wellness and strengthen resiliency. Healthy professionals can better support their clients with effective and empathetic care, and we hope the symposium content will help them do that.”
Three CEUs will be available for both in-person and virtual participants, courtesy of Ascension Saint Alexius. Additional sponsors include Kane County System of Care and Rotary Club of Schaumburg-Hoffman Estates. Registration is $40/in-person and $20/virtual. The symposium takes place in Palatine at Harper College's Wojcik Conference Center. Full details are on CAC's website or register directly on Eventbrite.
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By: Cristina Fausto, Bilingual Trauma Therapist
Sometimes the path to a child’s disclosure of abuse isn’t as straightforward as we may think. Such is the case for 14-year-old Yvette. Initially questioned by a DCFS investigator as an outcry witness for a separate case involving a peer, Yvette disclosed that she had been and was still being sexually abused by her stepfather for almost 2 years. Yvette participated in a separate forensic interview which led to the offender’s arrest and detainment until his trial.
Yvette’s Family Advocate referred her to CAC's trauma-focused therapy and provided Yvette and her mother emotional support while on the waitlist to begin services. Yvette's trauma-related symptoms included suicidal thoughts, fear of the dark and sleeping alone at night, elevated anxiety and feelings of shame and guilt for not speaking out sooner. Through therapy, Yvette learned various grounding and relaxation skills to help manage her triggers, and over time, she noticed that she could handle talking about the abuse without becoming overwhelmed.
With the help of her therapist, Yvette eventually completed a trauma narrative using sand tray play, which helped her process the sexual abuse and reframe her thoughts on herself and her future. She felt so proud of herself for this accomplishment. Her mother also shared the positive changes in Yvette’s mood and her ability to joke around with others again. In the end, Yvette noted how much her confidence had increased and that she finally believed with 100% certainty that she was not to blame for the sexual abuse.
While Yvette participated in trauma therapy, her Advocate attended all court proceedings with her mother and helped the family navigate that lengthy process. Shortly after Yvette successfully terminated therapy, the offender pled guilty to the charges presented against him and was sentenced to 12 years in prison. He will be registered as a lifetime sex offender.
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By: Yesenia Hernandez, Bilingual Trama Therapist
The Community Connections Center is a resource center for residents of Mount Prospect, hosted jointly by the Village of Mount Prospect Human Services Department and the Mount Prospect Public Library South Branch. One of the most popular programs, the Play and Learn group facilitated by the Human Services Department and South Branch Library, offers caregivers and children ages two to five opportunities to engage in interactive, play-based learning. Activities include story-time, arts and crafts and music. This group is held every Tuesday from 11:30am-12:15pm. Families must be a Mount Prospect or Elk Grove Township resident to attend. For any questions, please call 847-506-4930 or visit the Village website at https://www.mountprospect.org/departments/human-services
In May, Bilingual Trauma Therapist, Yesenia Hernandez, and Lead Advocate/Bilingual Trauma Therapist, Romelia Rodriguez, will be co-facilitating a group for participants in the Play and Learn group. The pair will facilitate activities based off of Theraplay® Principles that focus on attachment, connection and attunement between caregiver/child.
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In April, CAC's CEO Melanie Pignotti (front row center in pink) served as a member of the ChildFirst faculty for a weeklong training hosted by Children's Advocacy Centers of Illinois (CACI). Child First by Zero Abuse Project is a nationally recognized Forensic Interview protocol. The intensive 40-hour course is exclusive to Multidisciplinary Team (MDT) members, and participants must pass a mock interview and final test. Melanie has been on the Illinois Child First faculty since 2019. In addition, CAC Forensic Interviewers Wendy Diaz, Taylor Edmunds and Jessica Montgomery got to switch roles and serve as child actors for the mock interviews that trainees must complete. (Photo via CACI's Facebook page.) | | | |
CAC STAFF AND MDT PARTNERS ATTEND TRAINING SIMULATION IN SPRINGFIELD
In April, CAC sent a team of Multidisciplinary Team (MDT) partners to the University of Illinois-Springfield for a training in which the team was tasked with investigating and collaborating on a simulated child abuse case from start to finish.
CAC staff members Jessica Montgomery, Romelia Rodriguez and Wendy Diaz were joined by detectives from both court districts that CAC serves, a local DCFS investigator and prosecutors from the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office. The team worked together with another MDT from southern Illinois to walk through a case involving allegations of abuse. Utilizing a Problem-Based Learning Model, they covered each step of the process, from the initial police/DCFS contact through the medical exam, advocacy support and forensic interview and finally to the necessary steps for prosecution of the simulated case. It was an amazing opportunity to breakdown, evaluate and practice the coordinated multidisciplinary response to allegations of child abuse or other forms of violence in a mindful and intentional setting with professional actors and guidance from veterans in the child advocacy field.
Pictured below is the training class including CAC Director of Forensic and Advocacy Service Jessica Montgomery, CAC Lead Advocate and Bilingual Trauma Therapist Romelia Rodriguez and CAC Lead Forensic Interviewer Wendy Diaz.
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IN THE COMMUNITY
CAC staff were out and about in April letting the community know all the ways our organization is a resource to residents. Highlights include:
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Director of Clinical Services Kate Schultz attended the Week of the Young Child (WOYC) Expo at the Forest View Educational Center in Arlington Heights on April 4. WOYC is celebrated in collaboration with the administration, teachers and staff of the Early Childhood Block Grant programs serving Palatine and Wheeling Townships and District 214 Community Education. They are all dedicated to providing high quality education and services for children, birth through five years and their families. Approximately 100 families attended the event.
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Safe from the Start Supervisor Bianca Gonzalez (pictured above, top left) and Kate Schultz attended Hanover Township Mental Health Board's Resource Fair on April 8 where they joined 23 other vendors to share mental health resources within the communities that CAC serves and engaged in networking with other providers.
- Bianca Gonzalez and Lead Family Advocate/Bilingual Trauma Therapist Romelia Rodriguez (pictured above, bottom left) attended Palatine High School's Sexual Assault Awareness Month Cultural Fair while Bilingual Trauma Therapist Cristina Fausto and Bilingual Family Advocate Paula Amat were part of the panel discussion (pictured above, right, in the flyer). With the other panelists, CAC staff talked about green flags versus red flags in relationships, the definition of consent, how to best support friends who may be in violent relationships, victim blaming and its prominence in our culture and student rights under Title IX.
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We're looking for runners and walkers but also race volunteers! Various shifts/tasks available. It's a fun morning with friendly teammates and an easy way to support CAC's work in the community. Click the Volunteer button below to see shifts and sign up. Thank you for your time! | |
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RECENT GRANT AWARDS
CAC would like to thank longtime partner Amgen (formerly Horizon Therapeutics) for the $10,000 gift made in March.
CAC also received $6,500 from new funder, Barrington Area Community Foundation, in April.
In addition, thanks to the incredible support from CAC friends and Target shoppers, Target Circle voting helped us receive a share of Target’s donation in the amount of $7,847.43!! CAC thanks Target Circle for this amazing opportunity to raise funds and publicize our name in our service area.
All of these gifts will support CAC's ongoing work in the community with young survivors of abuse and their non-offending family members.
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