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Press Room
Truth Editorial — Our obligation to children
Here's a quick quiz:
Who is most dangerous to a child?
Answer: The child's biological parents.
Who is next most dangerous?
Answer: A parent's significant other, usually a stepfather or a boyfriend.
Elkhart County learned that lesson twice in the last few days. In separate incidents, a 3-year-old girl and a 2-year-old boy received life-threatening injuries. A stepfather and boyfriend, who had been watching the children while the mother was out, have been arrested.
There is no training required to become a parent. No licensing. Mothers and fathers don't have to pass a test or prove themselves caring and capable or even aware of how challenging child care can be.
Absent that, we as a community have an obligation to keep children safe. Community agencies in Elkhart County offer excellent resources. Among them are Families First, which offers low-cost parenting classes and a resource kit to parents of newborns at Goshen and Elkhart hospitals. The parents can schedule a home visit and get help and learn about classes and other longer-term programs. Child and Parent Services -- CAPS -- also provides classes and information about intervention.
It's not only teachers, medical workers, caseworkers and police who may report child abuse. State law makes us all responsible. In Indiana, all persons have a legal obligation to report real or suspected child abuse. Friends, neighbors and family members all must call authorities if they suspect a child is in danger. There often are some warning signs. Rarely is a case of serious child abuse the first incident involving the abuser and child, said Jami Stamm, CAPS marketing director.
Parents, too, can get immediate help if they feel they are losing control. Child Protective Services and the local police departments are available 24 hours a day. Indiana also has a safe haven law that allows parents of newborns between birth and 45 days old who feel they are unable to care for an infant to drop that child off at an emergency room, police or fire station and surrender custody with no questions asked.
Obviously, police and Child Protective Services should be called immediately if a child is in peril. Otherwise, Stamm says, Elkhart County has adequate resources for intervention and education. Especially if we all help by not looking the other way when we suspect a child may be in danger.
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