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WOODBURY - "The Child Advocacy Center set an ambitious goal to train 5% of the adult population in Cannon and Rutherford Counties how to protect children from child sexual abuse utilizing the Darkness to Light Curriculum," said Child Advocacy Center director Sharon De Boer.
Darkness to Light is a program that Child Advocacy Centers in Cannon County, Rutherford County, and across the nation utilize with the mission to prevent sexual abuse.
"The evidence based Darkness to Light training centers on teaching adults how to prevent, recognize, and respond to child sexual abuse in a responsible and appropriate manner. By learning the 5 Steps to Preventing Child Sexual Abuse, community members will be prepared if they encounter an at risk child in our community," said Community Education Coordinator Zach Sanders.
These two new trainers join a group of 32 authorized facilitators in Cannon and Rutherford Counties certified to teach the Darkness to Light curriculum. National statistics state that 1 in 10 children will be sexually abused before their 18th birthday. These 2 new trainers will work to educate the community to break this cycle of abuse, will you join them?
Cassell Galligan-Davis
Galligan-Davis has been the Child Advocacy Center Cannon County Coordinator for the last year. She has been a well-respected member of the Child Protective Investigative Team for 12 years. She was employed by the Department of Children Services and she worked with the team to investigate child abuse reports, prosecute offenders, and help children and families heal from the trauma of the abuse for 11 years. Davis has 15 years of social work experience. She was employed by Friendship Home Health, Health Connect, and the Department of Children's Services. Davis is a Middle Tennessee State University graduate with a BS in Sociology and minors in Psychology and English. In addition to her work experience in Cannon County, Davis has family ties in the community. Her husband works in Cannon County and his family calls Woodbury home. As a result, she cares deeply about the community and hopes that the Darkness to Light training will teach parents and grandparents how to protect their children from child sexual abuse.
Zach Sanders
Sanders is the new Cannon County Community Education Coordinator for the Child Advocacy Center. Sanders was a 2014 graduate of Middle Tennessee State University with a bachelor's degree in Social Work. His college internships were with Journeys in Community Living and Tennessee Suicide Prevention Network. He was employed at Park Center for 3 years where he moved up through the ranks and held 3 different positions. Park Center is a private mental health agency in Nashville. He has strong social work skills and is a passionate advocate for children.
"The Cannon County Child Advocacy Center has been on the front lines with the Child Protective Investigative Team responding to child abuse and child sexual abuse cases for the last 10 years. Darkness to Light is our hope that we can prevent child sexual abuse from happening. We are excited that the new authorized Darkness to Light facilitators are available to train community groups. Each of them brings a wealth of experience working with child sexual abuse victims and their families," concluded De Boer.
Please contact Cassell Galligan-Davis or Zach Sanders at the Cannon County Child Advocacy Center to bring the Darkness to Light child sexual abuse prevention training free of charge to your church, school, business, non-profit agency, sports league, civic group, or other organization. Davis and Sanders may be contacted at the Cannon County Child Advocacy Center at 615-563-9915 or cdavis@cannoncac.org or zsanders@cacrutherford.org.
