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CACI is asking YOU to help us reach our

#GivingTuesday goal of $2500



(250 Champions of Children giving just $10/each)

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You can't "Rock n' Roll All Night" without having your name on the

CACI RockStar Walk of Fame.

“Giving Tuesday,” a global generosity movement aimed at helping benefit nonprofit organizations and encouraging people to give back, is set for November 3oth!


Big or small, it’s important to remember that every gift changes what’s possible. 


There is no limit to what we can do when we all come together. Gifts of all sizes are welcome, and more than half of the gifts we receive are less than $100. Collectively, they make a significant impact on the work of CACI!

Text CACI to 269-89OR Click here to donate
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Registration opens December 15, 2021

Gender Equity & Transgender Clinic w/ SIU Center For Family Medicine

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Congratulations to Careyana M. Brenham, MD and team!  Dr. Brenham serves on the CACI Board of Directors as Secretary, amongst her many other important roles in the community.  


SIU Center for Family Medicine-Springfield has opened the “Gender Equity Clinic”. They are open the 1st and 3rd Tuesdays mornings of each month. The new Gender Equity & Transgender Clinic offers holistic care, including preventive health care, management of chronic health conditions, and emotional support to patients in the LGBTQIA community.

Emilie Morris' sex abuse case died with her, but action in schools is just beginning

ST. LOUIS - An infamous St. Louis sex abuse case is leading to safety changes at schools. It's the tragic case of Lindbergh High School graduate Emilie Morris, whose death ended the investigation of an alleged abuser. Emilie's story, however, lives on with a new child protection law.

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Keep Kids Safe

About 1 in 4 girls and 1 in 13 boys experience child sexual abuse at some point in childhood. This public health crisis has been put on the backburner for too long and was only exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Study Confirms Rise in Child Abuse During COVID Pandemic - Drugs.com MedNews

By Denise Mann HealthDay Reporter> FRIDAY, Oct. 8, 2021 - Physical abuse of school-aged kids tripled during the early months of the pandemic when widespread stay-at-home orders were in effect, a new study finds. Exactly what triggered the surge is not fully understood, but other studies have also reported similar upticks in child abuse.

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Transgender Day of Remembrance

Transgender Day of Remembrance (TDOR) is an annual observance on November 20 that honors the memory of the transgender people whose lives were lost in acts of anti-transgender violence. You can read more about the Transgender Day of Remembrance below, and find out how you can show support for the community on this day.


What is Transgender Day of Remembrance?

Learn More
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DCAC’s education team first began its community education initiative in Dallas County and has now made its programs appropriate for national use. The DCAC Training Center is a platform to host video-based curriculum for one-time users, as well as to facilitate resources to child-serving organizations.

View Free Trainings
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OVC and the Office on Violence Against Women hosted a webinar on Friday, October 29, 2021, on how COVID-19 has impacted the occurrence of domestic violence across the country.


Watch the recording below.

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Kenny Matthews

Chief Financial Officer

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DATA UPDATE


If you're on Collaborate, please remember to have all data input by the 15th of each month. 


If you're not on Collaborate, please send your DCFS Data forms to Hanane and myself via email.


BOOK RECOMMENDATION


I recently read Can't Hurt Me by David Goggins and I can't recommend it enough. The audiobook version is even better. Goggins keeps it real and his story is sure to inspire (strong language warning).

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Hanane Bousfoul

Data and Communications Specialist

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OUTCOMES MEASUREMENT SYSTEMS (OMS)


According to the data collected from the MDT survey on the OMS system, 98.8% of MDT members agree that the children's advocacy center model fosters collaboration on the multidisciplinary team in the state of Illinois. An MDT team member highlighted the work ethic and successful collaboration between all the different team members.

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Mike Burns

Statewide MDT Coordinator

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CACI will be hosting the virtual MDT Coordinator Training on December 2nd and 3rd. We are excited to have Greg Flett, Senior Project Specialist with the National Children's Advocacy Center, speak on the 2nd day of the training.



Four teams have been selected for our first Crime Scene to Trial training from December 14-16, 2021. The training is in-person and being held in Springfield. The training is at the University of Illinois Springfield campus and we are excited to partner with Zero Abuse Project and UIS to bring this training to Illinois.

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Greg Flett

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UIS Campus

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Zero Abuse Project

Ya'Shika Reed

Training and Prevention Specialist 

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CACI hosted the Standing with Survivors Annual Advocate Training November 16-17th.


This year's in-person advocate training featured two keynote speakers Dan Powers ,LCSW Chief Operating Officer of the Children's Advocacy Center of Collin County, Texas presented on Vicarious Trauma, Ethics and Working with a Non-offending caregiver and Aaron Tomlinson Program Administrator of NCJTC presented on Verbal De-escalation and Conflict Resolution followed by an additional track allowing for participants to choose from. Advocates got the chance to participate in training session such as "Human trafficking," "Support Dogs," and "Crime Victim Compensation" just to name a few. These sessions were provided to advance advocates' knowledge to best assist children seen at the CAC, along with their caregivers. 


"I am reaching out to provide some feedback on the advocate training this week. Amazing presentations both days! I did track 1 both days and found them to be very helpful and insightful. Day 2 was great the speaker actually had a way for us virtual attendees to participate via texting and chat box that was nice to feel included in the discussions and activities. Only drawback was some sound issues a few times and getting into the sessions. Day 2 I just stayed in the zoom instead of signing out each break/lunch or between sessions. I didn't see anywhere to do feedback on the sessions but wanted to say THANK YOU for providing a great 2 days of learning!"


-Tracy Greenwalt


CACI would like to thank all the presenters that made the training such a success:

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Kathy L Murphy

VOCA Fiscal Grant Monitor

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VOCA FISCAL NEWS


Upcoming Due Dates

 

CESF November Fiscal Expense PFR due Monday, December 6, 2021 (since 5th falls on Sunday)

 

VOCA November Fiscal Expense PFR due Friday, December 10, 2021.

 

**If you are unable to submit your PFR by the due date, please contact me to request an extension. Late reports will be tracked and used when evaluating risk assessments.

Michael Morgan

VOCA Program Grant Monitor

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Thank you everyone that attended the AmpliFund Training. We will be posting the recording of the training soon and will also be sending it out to all directors. 

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Emergency Lights On: Local Police Officers Brighten Boy's Night With Parade

PLAINFIELD, IL - Local police departments gathered Wednesday night to celebrate Plainfield Police Department's honorary police officer Breckin VanHyning, a 7-year-old boy who was diagnosed with brain cancer in December. At 7 p.m., officers activated the emergency lights on their squad cars and drove past the boy's house in Channahon to "brighten [his] spirits."

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Watch the sweet way this little girl greets her big brothers after school

Things were looking up this week (sometimes literally)! Here are some reasons why: SpaceX, the company founded by Elon Musk, launched four private passengers into space this week - giving Florida locals a brilliant evening launch view - making it the first time ever an all-civilian crew will orbit the Earth.

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Colombian Couple Living In Boston Asks For Thanksgiving Invites, Hundreds Of Neighbors Respond

A Colombian couple looking to celebrate their first Thanksgiving in the U.S. have received hundreds of invites from complete strangers. Credit: Susana Orrego via Nextdoor App Susana Orrego and her husband Edward are new to the United States. Susana is a full-time student at Harvard Medical School.

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Grandmother, teen who met after accidental text now celebrating 6th Thanksgiving together

SAN ANTONIO - What started as an accidental text from an Arizona grandmother has now turned into a six-year Thanksgiving tradition. In 2016, Wanda Dench, who believed she was texting her grandson, mistakenly invited 17-year-old Jamal Hinton over for Thanksgiving dinner, according to the Huffington Post.

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Vermilion County Child Advocacy Center

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DANVILLE — A tree on a wall inside the Vermilion County Child Advocacy Center has paper leaves colored by children already helped by the new local center.


One leaf talks about hope being there, and another has a drawing of a rainbow and says “after every storm there is a rainbow.”

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Livingston County Children's Advocacy Center

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Tuesday, October 26th, CACI Director of Programs and Member Services, Cara Vock, visited the open house hosted at the Livingston County Children's Advocacy Center in Pontiac, IL.


This new CAC location has been updated to be comforting for any community member, team member, service provider, or child who walks through its door. It's very evident that many hours of dreaming and hard work into making this space so perfect, and we are very excited the children in the Livingston County have this wonderful new space for advocacy, court prep, forensic interviews, therapy, and service referral all free of charge.


We are inspired by your efforts in making sure every child feels a sense of belonging in this new spot. Congratulations to all!

Visit the McLean County CAC Facebook Page

Lake County Children's Advocacy Center

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Holiday | Lake County Children's Advocacy Center

Includes Distillery Tours and Tastings at Stitzel-Weller, Maker's Mark, and Jim Beam. Lunch, Private Tour Leader, 3-Night Stay, and Airfare for 2. Only 100 Raffle Tickets Available for this Trip!

Find Out More
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Shining Star Children's Advocacy Center

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Welcome Back and Congratulations

Jessica Cash - Executive Director


Jessica has 7 years experience at Shining Star with previous experience as the Family Advocate, Forensic Interviewer, Counselor, and recently started the position of Executive Director.


Jessica holds a Masters degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling and is a Licensed Professional Counselor. Jessica has 20+ years experience working with children and their families. When asked what she enjoys most about working at Shining Star, she states its her passion to work with kids and families at what may be one of the hardest points in their life, to help them get through that rough and challenging time, receive services to heal from their abuse, and go on to live a happy healthy life. Jessica also enjoys working with the team of professionals who also help turn child victims into survivors that includes Law Enforcement, Prosecutors, DCFS, Medical Providers, Mental Health Providers, and Advocates.

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