5k Event a Great Success
A 5k event has raised $8,000 for the Marshfield Child Advocacy Center, with the mission of raising awareness of child abuse and neglect.
“Be a Hero” returned for its second year April 28 at Wildwood Park. “The community support has been amazing,” said Stephanie Dischinger, event organizer. “We had around 250 race participants — and many more children at the event this year. People came from all over the state of WI. It is wonderful to see how many people are making child abuse awareness and prevention their mission.”
“My committee members (Christine Virnig, Marilyn Lezotte, Karin Freese & her daughter Lexi, Tammy Sackmann, Regina Fisher, Kristina Howey and Allison Karo) worked so hard to make sure this event went off without a hitch, and it went extremely smooth.”
In line with the event’s mission, the funds raised will directly help children who are potential victims of abuse. The Marshfield Child Advocacy Center acts as a safe and child-friendly location for children to tell their story, and can perform medical exams to evaluate their situation. In 2017, a total of 359 children visited the center, an increase of 29% from 2016.
In addition to raising funds, Dischinger hopes that the event will help others talk about this important though sensitive topic. “Everyone can ‘Be a Hero’ and speak up. I want to encourage people not to be afraid to report suspected child abuse or neglect,” said Dischinger. “It is better to be wrong than too late, and it takes a village to keep our children safe.”
Dischinger first organized Be a Hero in September 2016 as a positive response to her own experiences. “I was unaware how many children are abused or neglected until my son became a statistic. My son, Alex, was diagnosed with Abusive Head Trauma (shaken baby syndrome) when he was just under 3 months old.
Alex spent a week in the hospital undergoing tests and was seen by many specialists. Though a traumatic time, Dischinger said her son is one of the lucky ones. “He made miraculous strides toward recovery and is defying all obstacles placed in his way by this reckless act of abuse. Unfortunately, not all children are that lucky. Approximately 5 children die daily in the US from abuse or neglect.”
Dischinger plans to organize the event next year on April 27, 2019 for National Child Abuse Awareness month and would like to make Be a Hero an annual event on the last Saturday in April. “Child Abuse is extremely sensitive to talk about and it is one of those issues that is easier to pretend doesn’t exist. But it does exist, and we have to stop it,” she said.
Visit the Be a Hero Facebook page for more great photos.
