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Mountain State residents are quick to leap to the aid of any cause that helps our most vulnerable children. But even with a growing number of resources, those kids are suffering more than ever. West Virginia Child Advocacy Network reports child abuse complaints are up 20% over the past five years, according to WOWK.
Risk factors include poverty, isolation and substance use -- and despite so many working to pull us out of those depths, such issues have only deepened here in West Virginia. WVCAN reports children here are five times more likely to be drug-endangered than the average child in the United States.
While it would be nice to believe the politicians who say they care so much about our state's children are working toward addressing those risk factors, the reality is at-risk kids must depend on the rest of us to help.
"The majority of people who abuse children know the children and are caregivers or are in positions of trust," Kate Flack, CEO of WVCAN, told WOWK. "Those children who are … being abused oftentimes are being abused by the ones who care for them."
Though there are cases such as the Calhoun County 8-year-old who jumped out a second story window and ran away barefoot to tell authorities she hadn't eaten in three days and her parents didn't want her anymore, for the most part, abused and neglected children do not have a way out. They don't get help unless someone reports what they suspect.
If you have reason to believe a child is being abused or neglected, it is no time to mind your own business. Report your suspicions immediately. You can make a report to Child Protective Services by calling 800-352-6513, or contact your nearest child advocacy center for guidance. Find one here: https://wvcan.org/about/locations/
Don't hesitate. You might be a child's only hope.