ANNUAL
REPORT
2014
Celebrating 15 years
of empowering
children to find
their voice
COMPASSION:
because life at times is fragile
TEAMWORK:
because our mission/vision
is too large for one person
INTEGRITY:
because so many are counting on us
OUR CORE
VALUES:
EXCELLENCE:
because we need to do our best for
the right reason every day
HUMILITY:
because we all have limitations within our role
First step in my transition
A Letter from Beverly R. Engle,
CAC Executive Director
Bags … lots of bags! Tapestry ones,
ones with bright cheery reminders, roses,
professional leather ones, there have
been lots of bags over the past 15 years
that have been thrown over my shoulder
daily to carry those most important
calendars, grants, letters, donations,
etc from my office at Restoration Village
to my office at the Children’s Advocacy
Center.
However, the early part of November
marked the first step in my transition
from working at both agencies to the final
step that will take place on the last day
of July 2015. I moved into my incredibly
beautiful office located in the recently
remodeled Library/Office building nestled
in the trees between both agencies.
Wow! One desk, one computer and a
much lighter bag to carry!
The transition is both beautiful and
sad. There have already been times of
grieving, I will miss seeing the children
playing on the playground at the CAC,
seeing them come into the Center for
counseling, for their interview, hearing
their giggles during a medical. That’s the
sad part. The beautiful part is knowing
this is the direction God is taking me, is
taking us. The beautiful part was sitting
in a board room a few months ago and
hearing our daughter share with the
CAC Board of Directors that as she sat
on a Friday morning in a class at the
Soderquist Leadership training, she
knew, really knew that God was asking
her to take this role as the new Executive
Director. God had whispered that to
my soul several years ago, but Natalie
needed to know, I needed to know, the
Board, the CAC Team needed to know
it was truly God’s leadership and not her
mothers. She received that confirmation.
These next six months, I will be
shadowing Natalie. I will be an observer
watching the most amazing teamwork
ever taking place. I am so grateful for
Natalie, Kathy, Erin, Early, Christy, Jenny,
Jolana, Austin, Orianna, Erica, Courtney,
Megan, Rita, Sarah, Susan and Kay . . .
such amazing warriors in this little army to
rescue and restore our precious children.
We are blessed!
About The Children’s Advocacy Center:
Our Vision: Eliminate Child Abuse
Our Mission: Empowering Children to Find Their Voice
1
Our Purpose: To provide a safe place for child abuse victims and their families to
receive comprehensive services from dedicated professional interviewers, nurses,
counselors and advocates in a child-friendly atmosphere through a coordinated team
approach as well as provide education to the community.
My Journey to the CAC
As a young girl, I had always wanted to
follow in my mother’s shoes, whether it
was her house slippers, her fancy heels,
or even her job as a “counselor.” But
that was before living several years in
a women’s shelter and seeing all of the
many people and tough situations that
I had witnessed. By the time I was a
teenager, I wanted absolutely nothing to
do with it and New York was sounding
pretty good. And then a lot of “life”
happened. It’s funny to me how things
often work out. I applied for nursing
school not even really wanting to be
a nurse, but when I was unexpectedly
accepted, I was ready for the adventure.
I had no idea it would lead me straight
to the CAC. Becoming a certified
sexual assault nurse and also working
alongside one of the greatest women
I have ever known has been beyond
any other job experience I could ever
imagine! But if you were to tell me then
that I would someday be the executive
director of the Children’s Advocacy
Center, I would have laughed, because
those are some extremely huge shoes to
fill! My passion for the work at the CAC
and with the children and families very
quickly became my own passion. This
was not something that I was taught or
mimicked. And once I truly knew what
kinds of things were happening to our
most precious gifts, our children, I knew
that I would never be able to walk away
from this line of work until the work is
done and we are no longer needed.
The transition into the role of executive
director has been a very slow one. My
original fear was that this transition
was just natural because of the family
affiliation and it was just the expectation
of me. It wasn’t until November of 2013
that this changed for me. It was the
very last day and very last session of
Leadership Training at the Soderquist
Learning Center. I had been searching
all week for this “call to leadership” but
A Letter from Natalie R. Tibbs,
CAC Assistant Director and RN
it had been silent. But in this moment
while listening to Don Soderquist talk,
I felt this very heavy feeling come over
me and very clearly, realized that this
was my calling. Though the shoes aren’t
quite as comfortable as mom’s old pink
furry house shoes were or as fancy as
her heels, I am beyond excited and
honored to step into this next phase at
the Children’s Advocacy Center and see
all of the amazing things we will be able
to continue doing to empower children
to find their voice. I have no intention of
walking away from all of the training and
experience I have gained as a sexual
assault nurse and would miss working
directly with the children too much, but
I also know that it can no longer be my
main priority. We have an incredible
team of professionals that I have the
honor of working alongside through
this fight, and together, we will continue
fighting to eliminate child abuse within
our community!
Table of Contents:
Pages 1 & 2: Letters from Beverly and Natalie
Pages 3-5: 2014 Highlights
Page 6: Income and Statistics
Page 7: 15 Memorable Moments in CAC History
Page 8: CAC Staff and Board Listings
Pages 9 & 10: Empowering Moments
2
2014 Highlights
Beverly’s award from
National Children’s Advocacy
Center
CAC Executive Director, Beverly Engle,
received national recognition for her role
in Victim Advocacy from the National
Children’s Advocacy Center. In March
2014, Beverly was recognized for her
collaborative efforts to involve the
community in awareness activities and to
improve the efforts of community response
in both prevention and intervention of child
abuse. Beverly’s collaborative efforts to
create better outcomes for children and
prevention are not restricted to the local
arena, but also reach to the state level.
Beverly was nominated to receive this
award by her fellow constituents. They
wrote “to see Beverly in action standing up
for children is a true inspiration”.
Community Connections
Celebration
Last year, the CAC created a Community
Connections celebration held in July and
October at Eighth Street motel in Rogers.
We were able to provide free food, games,
giveaways and health screenings to the
residents. We are extremely grateful to our
friends at First National Bank of NWA
3 for providing dinner and volunteering.
CAC received United
Way awards
CAC staff accepted both the “Give Award”
and “Summit Award” from United Way for
having 100 percent staff participation and
increasing giving by 68 percent over the
previous year. This is one of many ways
that CAC staff is invested in our community
to empower kids.
Natalie’s Commendation
Natalie Tibbs, CAC Assistant Director and
RN, received a Letter of Commendation
from the Rogers Police Department for
being instrumental in the protection of two
small children as she called the police
when she recognized what was later to
be found as a drunk driver. “Your selfless
actions that day display the highest of
character”. We are very proud of Natalie
for demonstrating her commitment to
eliminating child abuse on and off the job!
2014 Highlights
Pinwheels for Prevention
campaign expanded
The Pinwheel has been adopted by
Children’s Advocacy Centers to represent
a child’s innocence. During the month
of April, pinwheels were placed at local
businesses, police departments, and
homes throughout Benton County. We
appreciate all who chose to Empower Kids
by partnering with us on this awareness
campaign.
Glow Run
On April 18th, we hosted our 14th Annual
Cherishing Children Glow Run in downtown
Rogers. Last year’s event featured a 1-Mile
Fun Walk, a 400-Yard Super Hero Dash,
a chip-timed 5K Glow Run plus several
family-friendly activities and lots of glow!
Nearly 600 runners/walkers/dashers helped
to make last year’s event a success with
the fundraiser bringing in over $20,000.
These funds supported the Center’s
mission –empowering children to find their
voice to speak up against abuse.
Shining Star Award recipients
On April 1st, Shining Star awards were
given to two individuals: Benton County
Prosecutor Van Stone and Bentonville
Police Department Detective JC Wiseman
at the annual Prevention rally that was
held at Dave Peel Park in Bentonville.
These awards were given to honor their
dedication and passion to working with
children and families impacted by abuse.
We are so honored to have them on our
multidisciplinary team!
4
2014 Highlights
Annual Dinner
On September 25, we hosted our 10th
annual Cherishing Children Dinner
and Awards presentation at John Q.
Hammons Center in Rogers. Over 250
guests gathered to support the CAC’s
mission of eliminating child abuse and to
celebrate individuals and companies for
their work with the organization. Award
recipients were Kimberly-Clark receiving
the Empowering Kids Award; Stephanie
Abernathy as the One with Courage Award
recipient; and John and Kathy Farrell as
recipients of the Advocate for Innocence
Award. A special surprise presentation
was made toward the end of the program
awarding Beverly Engle with the very first
Beverly R. Engle Pioneer Award to be
given to pioneers working in the field of
child abuse.
5
Sky Dive for Kids
On August 9th & 10th we hosted our 5th
Annual Sky Dive for Kids fundraising event
at SkyDive Sky Ranch in Siloam Springs.
Forty participants brought in over $41,000
for victims of child abuse seen at the CAC,
making this our biggest Sky Dive for Kids
fundraiser to date.
Sweetest Day
On October 18th, over 125 individuals
enjoyed live music, a catered meal by
Bonefish Grill, both live and silent auctions,
and an opportunity to mingle with area
corporate executives at the annual
Sweetest Day fundraising event hosted
by John and Karen Scholes. In addition,
Tearle Byers, was honored by the CAC
for bringing this event to the area 10
years ago. Sweetest Day is a celebration
reminding us that a thoughtful word or
deed enriches life and gives it meaning.
Last year, a record-breaking $47,000 was
brought in for the Children’s Advocacy
Center of Benton County to continue
providing services free of charge to victims
of child abuse in Northwest Arkansas.
Income and Statistics for 2014
In 2014 the CAC opened 729 cases; conducted 699
forensic interviews; performed 173 forensic medical exams,
provided 2,446 counseling sessions to children and their
families and facilitated 45 training and education events to
1,745 people. Of those trained, 639 were school-aged
children and 1,106 were adults.
Age of Children
Receiving Services
Income Sources
3% Foundations
6% United Way
26%
Individuals
13%
314
43%
236
Corporations
33%
174
24%
14%
22%
Fundraising
Events
Crime Victim
Reparations
16%
0-6
Government
Grants
37%
13-18+
YEARS OF AGE
Ethnicity of Children
Gender of Clients
Male: 269
7-12
Female: 455
79% Caucasian: 574
63%
10% Hispanic: 75
5% Other: 34
4% American
Indian: 27
Identification of
Alleged Offender
26%
Other
known
person
2% African
American: 12
0% Asian/
Pacific Islander: 2
Age of Alleged Offender
20%
75% Adult
(Ages 18+): 313
Other
relative
19%
9%
40%
Stepparent
or Parent
Parent’s
boyfriend
or girlfriend
5% Unknown
Juvenile
(Ages 14-17): 80
6% Underage
(Ages 10 and
younger): 25
6
15 Memorable Moments in CAC history by Beverly R. Engle
10. Having a major panic attack when
looking at all we would need to
accomplish to bring training to the
State of Arkansas so all front line
investigators could be trained in a
child friendly response to child abuse
allegations . . . and doing it anyway.
1. Walking through the shambles of an
875 square feet burned down house
and envision a Children’s Advocacy
Center.
2. Opening the doors on our new 875
square feet CAC on January 10,
2000.
11. David and I meeting with Dr. Panietz
and the NWACC Board of Trustees to
pursue NWACC housing a National
Child Protection Training Center on
campus.
12. Speaking the first time in front of a
legislative committee on behalf of a
bill to protect the records of CAC’s in
Arkansas.
3. The face of the first child who came
to our Center – an 11-year-old girl
who said “will I have to go to jail” and
thinking what it would have felt like if
she had to go to a police station for
her interview.
4. United Way giving us a Venture grant
in order to make payroll the first year.
5. A conversation with Bob Balfe,
elected Benton County Prosecutor
in 2002, who asked “If we hire a
prosecutor can you house them.” . .
. Candace Taylor’s first day at CAC
in her make-shift office only a few
months later.
6. Meeting Victor Vieth at a conference
in Huntsville and then sending our
first advocate to a Finding Words
conference to be trained as a forensic
interviewer – one of the first in our
state.
13. Putting the first statutes in our
Memory Garden.
7. Dr. Karen Farst donating a day a
week from her medical practice to do
medicals at the CAC.
15. Sitting in a CAC Board meeting and
hearing Natalie share with the Board
the impact of her attendance at the
Soderquist Leadership Training and
the epiphany moment when she knew
God was asking her to take the torch
and carry on the work of the CAC as
the new Executive Director.
8. An interview being used in court in
lieu of a child having to testify.
9. Bob Balfe telling me “prosecution has
increased 2,000 percent since the
CAC opened.”
7
14. Jumping out of an airplane in order
to provide counseling services at the
CAC.
CAC Full and Part-time Staff
Beverly Engle, Executive Director
Natalie Tibbs, Assistant Director – RN
Erin Kraner, Team Leader – Forensic
Interviewer
Rita Farrell, Forensic Interviewer & Director
of Education*
Jolana Aibangbee, Director of Development
Kathy Morrison, Business Manager
Jenny Finch, Mental Health Coordinator,
Counselor
Erica Maples, Counselor
Early Mallow, Bilingual Advocate and
Forensic Interviewer
Austin Harms, Advocate
Christy Hathcock, Advocate*
Orianna Marquez, Bilingual Advocate
Courtney Harms, Office Assistant *
Kay Pantier, Contract Counselor
Megan Taylor, Contract Counselor
Sarah Phillips, Contract Counselor
Susan Kilpatrick, Contract Counselor
*Indicates new staff members
Board of Directors
Shelley McMillon, President
Jennifer May-Brust, Vice-President
Dr. Cheryl Hull, Secretary
Ed Riendeau, Treasurer
Ron Branscum
Chip Jackson
Garrett Lewis
Margie Martin
Oliver Martinez
John Scholes
Board Advisors
Bob Balfe
Timothy Hutchinson
Kerry Kotouc
Dr. Dan Weeden, Medical Director
Board Member Emeritus
Guy Cable
Sallye Hof
Susan Hutchinson
8
Empowering Children
A few empowering moments as told by our staff.
Mental Health
I met with one little girl
shortly before Christmas. I
have been meeting with her
for three or four months.
This little girl no longer has to see her
offender but she has to continue to revisit
the location of her abuse. In this session
I drew a thermometer and made ten
marks on it on a dry erase board. Then
I asked her to color it to represent how
safe she felt now when she goes back to
the location of her abuse. The higher she
colored indicated the safer she felt. She
colored the thermometer all the way up to
the ten. She feels safe! To understand
better if her level of safe feelings had
changed I asked her to do the same
thing for while the abuse was occurring
and right after it stopped. She said that
she would have colored a zero when the
abuse was occurring and a three right
after the abuse stopped. At the end of
the day I once again stood amazed at the
miracle that had occurred before my eyes.
In just a few months this child went from
ringing the CAC doorbell for the first time
with no feelings of safety to feeling as safe
as she can imagine.
Shared by
Erica Maples, CAC Counselor
9
Medical
Just before starting a
physical examination on
a 12 year old who was
sexually assaulted, she
looked up at me in somewhat disgust and
said “You must really hate your job!” I
was so puzzled that she would say that
and responded quickly “No, actually I
really love my job!” “Really? How?”
she responded, and then followed with
“Everyone here is just so chipper, it’s
weird.” I loved the perception and the
curiosity of this young girl and I always
enjoy hearing the children’s perspective
of us. I shared with her that I love what
I do in working with children through a
potentially tough time in their life and
getting to be part of helping them through
that. I was honored to share that with her
but even more blessed that I was given
a moment of joy by getting to share with
her one of the many reasons why I love
working at the CAC especially when
we are so often surrounded by difficult
situations and stories.
Shared by
Natalie Tibbs,
CAC Assistant Director and
Registered Nurse
n to Find their Voice
Advocacy
A little boy came to the
CAC to share his story
and was nervous as could
be. He arrived with his
mom, dad, and siblings—they had not
had anything to eat all day because they
had very low resources, and only dad’s
income to depend on. The family was very
grateful when I offered them hot pockets
to eat; they were so thankful, that all the
kids drew pictures for me to show their
appreciation. Not only was this family
grateful while they were here, but continue
to show their appreciation towards me
every time they come for counseling. The
CAC was able to provide tremendous
services for this family including,
counseling, school supplies, Christmas
gifts, a few warm sweaters for the kids,
and resources for food. After Christmas
they did not know how to show how much
they appreciated us, and they dropped
off a wonderful singing card that lit up
everyone’s face. It is incredible to see how
much more involved the parents have
become, and how they keep showing their
appreciation towards the CAC. The most
wonderful thing was to see how every one
of the children’s face lit up with a beautiful
smile while at the CAC!
Shared by
Orianna Marquez,
CAC Child Advocate
Interviewing
It’s far too often in our
community that children
are trapped in an endless
web of abuse, compounded
by layers of conflicting
emotions, entangled relationships,
manipulation, lies and deceit. The burden
is on these children to carry the weight
of their experiences until they reach a
point where they are able to allow the
magnitude of what’s been done to them
to cross the threshold of their innocent
mouths – the effect of which reverberates
through their lives like the ripples from the
tiniest rock thrown in the biggest body of
water. Sitting across from a child in the
interview, she slowly looks down after
being asked what she knows about her
visit to the CAC. In this moment, you
can see in her eyes that she is making
one of the most crucial and arguably
most important decisions of her entire
life thus far. “Do I tell them the details
of what I have been experiencing for
the last 6 years or do I continue to hide
it inside hoping that one day he will just
decide to stop?” And with the passing
of that moment, she looks up with her
courageous eyes and speaks as clearly
and concisely as she possibly can –
revealing the sexual abuse she has been
experiencing at the hands of her father
for many, many nights in the dark corners
of a place where every child is supposed
to feel safe and secure – her own
bedroom. She finds the strength to detail
the ways he would abuse her, and she
pulls back the proverbial curtain on the
moments in her life that are so laden with
embarrassment, guilt and shame. And
she does this for one very simple reason
– she has found her voice, and she is
nothing short of heroic.
Shared by
Erin Kraner,
CAC Forensic Interviewer
10
SAVE THE DATE: 2015 SIGNATURE EVENTS
Visit cacbentonco.com for additional information and sponsorship opportunities.
15th Annual
Cherishing Children
AUG. 8-9
2015
A P R I L 1 7, 2 0 1 5
Founding Sponsor
SKYDiVE
FOR KIDS!
Children’s Advocacy Center of Benton County
Day
Benefiting
Cherishing
Children Dinner
September 17, 2015
Honorary chairs-Doug
and Shelley McMillon
October 17 th
Hosted by John &
Karen Scholes
Empowering Children to Find their Voice
| www.cacbentonco.com | 479-621-0385