Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) of the 31st Judicial District and Hope Unlimited sponsored a variety of activities to recognize Child Abuse Prevention Month in April.
CASA volunteers planted Pinwheels of Prevention gardens at the Allen County Courthouse and at city halls throughout the county. Theyre also sponsoring a pinwheel coloring contest for kindergarten through third grade students in 17 schools in the 31st Judicial District and Anderson County. The top three pictures in each school will be selected at contests in Iola and Chanute April 24-25. Prizes donated by local businesses will be awarded and the colored pinwheels will be hung in the windows of participating businesses.
Iola city council members and Allen County commissioners signed proclamations to acknowledge the commitments of local organizations on child abuse issues, with representatives from CASA, Hope Unlimited, Kansas Department of Children and Families, KVC and mental health professionals in attendance.
CASA also kicked off their annual Pinwheels for Child Abuse Prevention pledge card fundraiser with Pumpn Petes Corporation of Erie. Petes 44 convenience stores and gas stations in three states are all collecting donations for CASA programs in southeast Kansas and northeast Oklahoma to benefit five CASA programs. The fundraiser is run by CASA of the 31st Judicial District in Iola.
