BELOIT — Hundreds of children’s books will be distributed by the Sexual Assault Recovery Program (SARP) to local daycares, preschools, elementary schools and families in Green County, thanks to a grant from the Community Foundation of Southern Wisconsin. The three different book titles focus on facilitating conversations about healthy physical boundaries, and on healing for children who have experienced sexual assault.
SARP, which serves both Rock and Green counties, will also give the books to parents at the Green County Human Services Child Advocacy Center. SARP partners with the Child Advocacy Center to provide support, information and advocacy to parents and caregivers of child survivors of sexual assault.
The grant money, which totals $4,375, will be used to purchase and distribute 150 copies each of three different titles. They are: I Said No! A Kid-To-Kid Guide to Keeping Private Parts Private; Monty’s Day in Court: What to Expect When you Have to Testify (English and Spanish) and Healing Days: A Guide for Kids Who Have Experienced Trauma.
“Our goal in distributing these books is twofold. One is to help parents, educators and concerned adults in giving kids guidance they can understand, practice and use to set boundaries for their bodies,” said Kelsey Hood Christenson, Director of Survivor Empowerment Services at SARP. “We also want to provide resources for adults to help children who have experienced trauma.”
SARP provides services to survivors and their family members of all forms of sexual violence, including recent sexual assault, past sexual assault, incest (past or present) and sexual harassment. Services are bilingual (Spanish and English), provided free of charge and include crisis intervention and support; support groups; medical/legal advocacy and community education. SARP serves women, children and men.
As part of Family Services of Southern Wisconsin and Northern Illinois, Inc., SARP extends to survivors of sexual assault all the support offered by Family Services. This includes financial planning; a range of domestic violence services; parenting support; therapy and counseling; legal advocacy and community.
