Opening Up

VICTOR

Hey everyone, welcome to Catch the Message. I'm Victor Pacini.

DEANNA

And I'm Deanna Hines.

VICTOR

How are you doing, Deanna?

DEANNA

Fantastic. I I love these, these short podcasts that we do and just, it, it really highlights, um, how our intentions to help kids really creates an impact. You know, and we, we kind of see the impact, um, right then and there when they share with us, but there's probably so much more that happens after we leave. And I know there's, um, uh, a, an experience that you wanted to share with everybody today.

VICTOR

Yeah. So, just if you are coming in fresh with this, and you've never seen this podcast before, we create quick curriculum that goes into schools and talks about, uh, body safety. More specifically, one of our programs is on sexual abuse awareness and prevention. Uh, very, very powerful. I wanna share a, a story today of, uh, complete courage cuz that's what this is all about. Catching the message about courage, especially with students. I was at a school a few years back talking to middle school students and it was a very small school. It was a one school district, actually it was a two school district, two separate buildings. But typically I don't eat lunch with the teachers or, or, uh, people like staff. I kind of stay in my own space and I'll eat if I have time, whatever, whatever. But this day they ask me to sit in the, in the lunchroom.

This is after, I think it was the seventh grade program. And I'm sitting there and the superintendent is there cuz her office is in the building and the social worker, all of a sudden a student runs in and says, oh my gosh, so-and-so needs to see you right away. And I knew probably what it was. So here's what happened. The, the, the girl, the friend, uh, saw my presentation and connected to the story that she had been sexually abused and the social worker went and talked to her and then came back and probably didn't do it the right way. And I know it wasn't the right way. She says, the mom's coming in, could you talk to her <laugh>? I'm like, well, I typically don't do that, but okay, under this circumstance, of course I will. Um, so found out that the child had been sexually abused by her grandfather and the parents couldn't figure out that every time, I think they were Skyping at that time, every time they would Skype the grandfather in Mexico, he lived in Mexico, she would not want to get on the call and she would just make up, you know, a reason, an excuse and not be on the call.

And then there were behaviors afterwards that she, they couldn't figure out her grades were slipping. She was probably talking back, getting maybe who, who knows what withdrawing, whatever she was doing. And the parents were like, they, they couldn't figure it out cuz she wasn't talking. Well, the mother just had just come in and we were talking and told the social worker that, well now, now we know, but good things. She talked because we were about ready to send her to the grandfather for this summer, for summer break, cuz this was like spring and school was just about over. So she would've gone back to her abuser. And, and again, I don't take credit for anything. I, I do what I do because I love it. And kids are the ones that are, and teachers too are making those decisions to talk about it. And the fact that she shared is what was so courageous. But the fact that if sh maybe if she didn't see my presentation, she never would've said anything and she would've gone back to Mexico and who knows what would've happened. So not only is this, this is like a double whammy in the sense that she's sharing that she's been sexually abused and the fact that it's a family member and the fact that they were ready to ship her off back to the, to the grandfather, I, I think it saved her, um, emotional life a hundred percent.

DEANNA

And, and her life in general. I mean, how terrifying to have that constant trigger of all these family members are on, on the Zoom or on Skype or whatever, and they're, they're seeing, you know, this person who seems like a great person to them, but that victim, that survivor is just triggered. And how, how very powerful for her to not only connect, but voice it. Yeah. What an absolute brave young lady.

VICTOR

Yeah. And I just think, you know, she got the help that she needed, hopefully and is doing really well in school, and I would assume she's probably close to graduating high school this year.

DEANNA

Wow.

VICTOR

Really cool. So this is what we do. We are very passionate about it. We, we are a survivor-led curriculum, uh, that is for all grades. Uh, it's also for kids, uh, that are deaf and heart of hearing, uh, Spanish speaking students. We have, uh, programs for children with special needs. Uh, we have curriculum for, uh, hu uh, trafficking and exploitation, um, harassment. But please feel free to go to our website, childhood victories.com, share it with your schools. And, uh, we thank you for your time. So have a great day and, uh, we'll see you next time. Don't forget, catch the message. Bye everyone.