April is Child Abuse Awareness MonthThe Month of April is Child Abuse Awareness Month. Friday afternoon on the Rutherford County Courthouse Lawn, the Rutherford County Coalition against Child Abuse along with their community partners kicked off the month with a Pinwheels for Prevention event. Several blue colored pinwheels decorated the courthouse lawn pinwheel as the new symbol for child abuse and neglect prevention nationwide.
The pinwheel represents efforts to change the way people think about prevention, focusing on community activities and public policies that prioritize prevention right from the start to make sure child abuse and neglect never occur.
Representatives from organizations such as Monroe Harding Foster Care and Adoption Services, Exchange Club Family Center, and the Guidance Center along with other programs set up booths. City Of Murfreesboro Police Chief Glenn Chrisman presented the very first William C. Whitesell Award for Service to Children of Rutherford County Award to Rutherford County District Attorney Bill Whitesell. Whitesell, the namesake of the award, has dedicated his career to prosecuting child abuse offenders to the fullest of the law. He has been a key person in putting together and organizing Child Advocacy Centers in Rutherford and Cannon Counties. Whitesell currently serves on the Rutherford and Cannon Counties Child Protective Investigative Team
