Blount County Children's Center, Blount County, Alabama

Parents, this link will take you to a great resource from the American Academy of Pediatrics with helpful advice for su***de prevention. September is Su***de Prevention Awareness Month. Equip yourself with information. Be proactive. Know the signs. Know what to do.

Su***de Prevention: 12 Things Parents Can Do As a parent, there are ways you can help pre-teens and teens cope when life feels too difficult to bear. Learn about the factors that can increase your child's risks for su***de and explore the 12 suggestions below. These steps can help you feel better prepared to offer the caring, non-judgmental...

Thank you to the community for all of your support in helping provide our immediate needs. We are happy to announce that every need has been met!

If you would like to support us in the future, we have recurring needs listed on our website.

www.blountcountychildrenscenter.com

Mark your calendar!

The legal complaint states that Snapchat is "a breeding ground for predators to collect s*xually explicit images of children and to find, groom and extort them." Parents, be ever vigilant.

New Mexico sues Snap over its alleged failure to protect kids from s*xtortion schemes New Mexico's attorney general has sued Snap over its alleged failure to protect children from s*xtortion, s*xual exploitation and other harms on Snapchat.

It always puts a smile on our faces when a child brings goodies by for our clients.

Thank you, Gemma, for having a huge heart and making such a kind donation.💙

We often hear, "How can I help?" We have an immediate need for snacks and drinks for our clients. Oftentimes, our clients visit us right after something traumatic has occured. We always make sure we provide a welcoming and safe envirement, and plenty of snacks and drinks to fill their bellies. Please see the list below for items needed.

If you have any questions, please call (205)274-7226 or email [email protected].

Some thoughts on the benefits of sitting together...

Sitting Together   September 2024   How good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity! Psalms 133:1 The Land Remembers is an autobiography written by Ben Logan in 1975. It is his story of growing

Last night was our annual Board Meeting. We said goodbye to Sherrie Hicks, Brian Weems, and Susan Richardson. We welcomed Jon Hughston, Erica Scott Tolbert, Jane Wright, and Debra Goble. We are so thankful for all our Board Members, past and present. We could not do what we do without their support.

Jordan, our therapist, and Kayla, our forensic interviewer, had so much fun opening the new Feelings & Emotions game. It's going to help some of our younger kids identify what's going on inside their heads.

Miss Terry and Coach Saban have been faithful supporters of the Blount County Children’s Center since they first arrived in Alabama. Today he said that although he is retired from coaching, he’s not retiring from his Nick’s Kids Foundation or supporting children’s charities in Alabama. Thank you Coach and Miss Terry!

Just another school teacher being an awesome person...

Oneonta teacher returns to classroom after caring for her son and husband who are both fighting cancer "Teaching is calling from God, I'm doing what I'm supposed to be doing," Wendy Smithson, a teacher at Oneonta Middle School, said. She returned to the classroom Monday and will welcome students back Thursday.

Roblox, a very popular video game, has a predator problem. We've worked cases with young children -- children who were groomed and abused by adults posing as children. 42% of all Roblox users are under the age of 13. This article shines a light on what is happening in the game and in the company. There are links to the blog and the documentary. Trigger warning: There are graphic animated images and explicit language in this story. But, it's what our children are seeing and hearing in this game. As parents, we need to know.

Roblox is Fighting to Keep Predators Away — But Isn’t Always Winning Connecting decision makers to a dynamic network of information, people and ideas, Bloomberg quickly and accurately delivers business and financial information, news and insight around the world

Check out this month's post for important info each of us needs to know...

Just Make The Call... It's the right thing to do.   July 2024   I grew up reading the Birmingham News, which was delivered to our house every day. I loved sports columnists Alf Van Hoose and Clyde Bolton. I never missed hu

63,000... That's how many Facebook accounts were taken down in Nigeria for extorting money from hapless victims. Many of these were "s*xtorting" teens, pretending to be another teen, obtaining compromising pics or videos, blackmailing the victim for financial gain. This article talks of a network of criminals who train others to target our young people... Thank you Meta (Facebook's parent company) for taking this action... Parents, be ever vigilant for your child's on-line safety.

Meta takes down thousands of Facebook accounts running s*xtortion scams from Nigeria Meta says it has taken down about 63,000 Facebook accounts in Nigeria that were engaging in financial s*xtortion scams — along with groups and pages that were trying to organize, recruit and train new scammers. Sexual extortion, or s*xtortion, involves persuading a person to send explicit photos o...

Thank you to Pastor Jones, Brandy Salamone, and all the wonderful kids and VBS workers at Haw Grove Missionary Baptist Church. They raised $420 to help support the work of the Children's Center. Thank you for sharing the love with us. God bless you all! ❤️

Major depression among teens is skyrocketing. Self-harm by teens is increasing at an alarming rate. Studies blame the use of social media. Alabama mental health and education leaders are grappling with the issue….

Social media drives rise in mental illness among teens, Alabama commissioner says Alabama Mental Health Commissioner Kim Boswell said limiting access to smartphones and social media can help.

🚨🎒🎒Don’t forget while you’re out and about this holiday week to drop off some supplies and backpacks at one of our donation drop of locations‼️‼️📚✂️✏️📓📝📕📒📏🖌️

📣📣🎒🎒🎒 updated list of drop off locations below. Make sure and get all your donations in‼️ if you need someone to meet you with your donation just shoot us a message. I am including a list of supplies needed below📚✂️✏️📓‼️
The Gym
Blind Faith Ink
ProFormance Diesel
Blountsville Public Library
Oneonta Public Library
iDaGamer
Strokin Diesel
Southern Swirls
Oneonta Hammer's
The Lunch Box
Blount County Tractor & Equipment Inc.
LA Hacienda Oneonta
Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church
Oneonta United Methodist Community
M.P. Dawson Mercantile
Two Roos Boutique
Kind + Kups Coffee
St Vincent’s Blount
Busy Bee
Lester Memorial Methodist Church
Remnant Church
Anchors Church
Oneonta Aquatics Facility
First Baptist Church
Kid's Campus, Inc.
Klein Drug Shoppe
Grace Baptist Church
Cotton Fields Bar & Grill
Hometown Bowls
Oneonta City hall
Church United
1st Franklin Financial Corporation
Lulu's BBQ
Oneonta Nutrition
Highland super stop

Life got you down? Click below for a summertime pick-me-up.

These Are A Few of My Favorite Things 💙   July 2024   In "The Sound of Music," Julie Andrews' character Maria gives the Von Trapp children some helpful advice. When the world is scary or sad, she says they will feel better if they just try

Did you know that June is Internet Safety Month?

During this month and 101 Days of Summer Safety, ALEA continues to bring focus to the crime of s*xtortion. Sextortion is an online crime that exploits youth through coercion or blackmail to acquire s*xual content, engage in s*x, or obtain money. Learn more ⬇

What: Free backpacks, school supplies, haircuts, food, and fun‼️

When: July 27th 4-8pm

Where: Susan Moore High school baseball fields

How: register here to sign up your kids!
https://m.signupgenius.com/ #!/showSignUp/10C0D4AABAF2CA1F9C25-43238434-back2school

Sponsored by: Churches and businesses of Blount county‼️‼️‼️

Want to help: message us and share share share ‼️‼️❤️ you can also sign up to volunteer at the following link.

https://signup.com/mobileweb/2.0/vspot.html?activitykey=43313150052

Bargains - for an excellent cause...

Send a message to learn more

So happy to see our state leveraging federal funds to make improvements in the way we provide mental health care ...

Better, faster care for mental illness, substance abuse, goal of new Alabama initiative Care centers in Huntsville and Mobile will become Alabama's first two Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics.

https://www.parents.com/coping-skills-for-kids-8650165

20 Coping Skills That Help Kids Deal With Big Emotions Coping skills for kids are essential. Parents should teach their children how to process and regulate challenging emotions. Every child should try to learn at least a few of these 20 coping skills.

Well done, Blount County Communications District!! Thank you!

The Blount County Communications District is only the second agency in the State of Alabama to achieve this certification and officially become a National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC), Missing Kids Readiness Program Certified 911 Center. We are continually working towards providing quality services to the communities we serve, through enhanced training programs and partnerships such as this, enabling us to provide support to the most vulnerable in our communities in times of great need.

My son's friend committed su***de. He was young and beautiful. My family is heartbroken. Our community is heartbroken. I can't even imagine what his parents and family are going through.

I don't understand depression or su***de. My mom used to say that su***de is a permanent solution to a temporary problem. Maybe that's trite. I don't know. But I do know that there are options. Talk to someone -- your friend, your coworker, your minister, your mom. Call 988, the National Su***de Hotline. Please know, you matter. You are loved. There are better days ahead. There has to be. --Michelle

Click below for some thoughts on keeping your kids safe this summer...

The Good Ole Summertime   June 2024   Welcome to summer vacation! Parents, as a reminder, there are only 73 days until your kids go back to school. Only 5 days until the stores start their back-to-school commercials. Summer

We are always so glad to see our friends from ACIPCO. They have supported the Children's Center from our beginning in 1989. Pictured with our staff are Steve Briscoe, Bobby Gray, Alan Chesser, Rodney Eggleton, and Jeff Bryant. Thank you for your generous donation. 💙

Blount County Schools is hiring!...

We are hiring substitute teachers and support personnel!

Applicants must be 21 years old to apply. Applications will be accepted through Tuesday, June 25, 2024 at 2:00 pm.

For more information please visit our website: https://www.blountboe.net/join-our-team/substitutes