January 2019 Plan to Protect ® Monthly Newsletter

It is with gladness that I welcome a new year. With each year comes many changes.   One thing that has not changed, though, is our commitment to the protection of children, youth and vulnerable adults. If you would like to learn more about what commitment means to us, CLICK HERE .    I was recently challenged with the thought that when we set resolutions we often fail, so we should identify a word or key phrase that we want to embrace for the year. In the past, we have shared with you the values of Plan to Protect ® that we embrace as a team. They have not changed very much over the past decade and we continue to hold each other accountable to these values.     It is our desire to reflect these values in everything we do. However, in keeping with the recommendation, we have identified three values that we are going to really focus on this new year. We want to raise the bar on these three values, so they really become part of our corporate DNA.

VALUE #1: Training and Education.  This is one of the things we do really well. The feedback on our training is 90% excellent. However, we know we can do better. This year we will be making a few key changes to our on-line training in response to some feedback we have received. We will be updating our Orientation and Refresher PowerPoints, adding Youth on-line training, and launching our Crisis Management and Response certification training. Watch for announcements of the launch of these over the next few months.    VALUE #2: Awareness and Protection.  I am progressing with my doctoral studies and will begin my research phase in 2019, which includes interviewing adult victims of child sexual abuse. The aim is to hear what they want and need from their communities of faith to nurture their healing. With this information, we believe we will be able to better equip many of our clients with knowledge on how to avoid re-victimizing individuals and help nurture the healing of victim-survivors of abuse.  If my research is of interest to you, please email me at  [email protected] .   VALUE #3: Team Work.  There must be something in the water, as we have had very little turnover the past ten years, but this year we are welcoming two new babies and sadly seeing Naomi and Karli go on maternity leave. Naomi has decided not to return to Plan to Protect but has accepted a position to be a Children and Family Pastor of her parish. Tori will be leaving us to move to Kenya to become the Child Protection Officer at Rift Valley Academy, a boarding school for children. We are pleased that Hayley, our Lead Trainer, has agreed to increase her hours and become our Manager of Member Services. We have recently welcomed Mariam and Kate to our team and will be adding one new team member to fill Tori’s shoes in May. Recognizing we are uniquely gifted, our desire is to work together as a team and celebrate our strengths and accomplishments.   CLICK HERE  to read about our team members.

WHAT ABOUT YOU?  What values will you embrace in 2019? Will abuse prevention and vulnerable sector protection be one of your values this coming year? Will you invest time and resources this year to continued learning so that you can effectively communicate what you have been called and gifted to do?

Protect - Issue 3 We are excited to share with you the third issue of our in-house publication, Protect. In this edition, we look at bullying, mental health, creating safe spaces, and much more. Subscribe to receive the hard copy of the publication – just $16 for two issues per year! The price includes shipping.

When I was a little girl, I hated all sports with balls – so, almost all of them. I remember being ‘forced’ to play football in elementary school and sitting in a field making dandelion crowns and necklaces while completely oblivious of the current action of the game. If the ball came flying through the air, I covered my head with my arms and closed my eyes. If the other players started running towards me (or even in my general direction), I ran the opposite way – sometimes off the field. In flag football, I was so afraid of getting tackled, I’d pull my own flags. I wanted nothing to do with it. Sometimes, when it comes to tough topics like abuse, bullying, cultural sensitivity, mental health illnesses, LGBTQ+, marijuana legalization, poverty, and child to child abuse we have a tendency ‘pull a Tori’. We cover our head with our arms, close our eyes, run away, run off the field or continue with our day-to-day activities completely oblivious to what is going on around us.   Keep reading here .

Save on Criminal Record Checks this Month! Don't postpone your Criminal Record Check renewals. We're offering HUGE SAVINGS this month – it adds up quickly! For non-members: During the month of January, save $3 off every Enhanced Criminal Record Check processed on the Plan to Protect ® ScreeningCanada Platform. Plan to Protect ® non-member price for January: $30 per check for employees and volunteers.

The member price for Criminal Record Checks is $29 per check, and in January is $24 per check.  If you are not a member, there is no better time to become one in order to enjoy greater savings. CLICK HERE to learn more about the benefits of being a Plan to Protect ® member.

January Training Dates To learn more or to register, click the name of the training. Plan to Protect ® Through Training – Complimentary   January 09, 2019 @ 12:00pm-1:00pm ET Plan to Protect ® Refresher LIVE   January 16, 2019 @ 7:30pm - 9:00pm ET Plan to Protect ® 101 – FREE   January 17, 2019 @ 12:30pm-1:00pm ET

Plan to Protect ® Orientation LIVE   January 19, 2019 @ 1:00pm-3:30pm ET Special Interest: Drugs and Alcohol  January 23, 2019 @ 12:00pm-1:00pm ET Click here for the full 2019 training calendar.