O.C. Has Capacity to Deter Child Abuse

The Times is to be commended for continuing coverage of the issue of Orange County’s child abuse.

Ten years ago, the Junior League of Orange County dedicated the entire $117,000 profit from our annual fund-raiser, The Christmas Company, to provide a community matching grant to build Orangewood, a replacement facility for the overcrowded Albert Sitton Home. Orangewood has developed into a nationally recognized model for children’s care facilities.

The bitter irony of Orangewood’s decade celebration is, of course, the ever increasing demand. The children who will go to bed tonight at Orangewood are the lucky victims. They have been taken from often unspeakable situations that horrify even the most seasoned care givers. Yet while they will sleep well tonight, their future is frightening and uncertain, and the rate of reoccurrence, unconscionable.

It is not as if we do not know what causes the intolerable occupancy rates at Orangewood. We also know how to fix it: mentoring programs, effectively spent dollars, and properly integrated social services work. What if, rather than reading about faceless children in the Times, abusive acts were being inflicted on our own children? Wouldn’t we demand that “the system” work?

The good news is that Orange County has the mechanisms necessary to help our children. The Junior League of Orange County joins with so many corporate partners, nonprofit agencies and individuals who are dedicating their resources, creativity and clout to create solutions. The Child Abuse Prevention Council and the Orange County Partnership for Children are vigilant in their collaborative efforts to maximize effectiveness of services. Our political climate is conscientious, with Gov. Wilson’s top education advisor, Maureen DiMarco, Supervisors William G. Steiner and Marian Bergeson, and Assembly members Marilyn C. Brewer and Jim Morrissey so attentive to children’s issues. Corporations such as PacifiCare, Pacific Mutual and Southern California Edison provide leadership for children’s programs. The success of the St. Joseph Ballet and Stop Gap demonstrate that it is possible to make change.

While we risk becoming anesthetized by the seeming endless reports of child abuse, we must continually stay focused on the issues. Hopefully, 10 years from now, Orange County will be nationally recognized not just for our facility, but for our prevention.

CAROLYN MCINERNEY

President

Junior League of Orange County

Newport Beach