YORK - For most parents, it is their worst nightmare: The reality that their child might be abducted or sexually abused by a trusted adult or a stranger.
For years, local resident Suzanne Heyland has worked with a small core group of volunteers to bring radKIDS, a program hailed across the nation as a tool to help children protect themselves against just such a tragedy, to town.
In 2003, Heyland founded Compassion 4 Children, a community-based child safety advocacy group, with her friend and fellow local resident Debbie Zerbinopoulos.
The group’s mission is to promote community education of the prevention of violence against all children. The group also strives to empower children to know they have the right to be free from all forms of abuse, bullying and harassment.
After hosting initial classes in the spring, Heyland has been able to announce the good news she has been working for two years to share. Local parent volunteers have been trained as radKIDS instructors and three members of the York Police Department completed their training in August, promising more opportunities for local children to take part in radKIDS classes.
Instructors take part in a three-day training program to be certified to teach the class.
"I applaud the volunteers for their commitment," Heyland said. "In addition, I really owe the York Police Department a huge thank you for supporting our efforts."
Heyland said she is looking forward to the collaborative effort to continue teaching radKIDS with members of the York Police Department.
York Police Chief Douglas Bracy echoed similar thoughts.
"Suzanne is a very dedicated volunteer and she is passionate about this cause," Bracy said. "This is the community working with us."
Although such cases do not happen everyday in a town like York, Bracy pointed out that there have been abductions in both Ogunquit and York in the last decade - and with abductions of children and teens making international headlines in recent years, Bracy said he hopes programs like radKIDS will help prevent such a tragedy here.
"It’s another part in our overall strategy," Bracy said. "A lot of what radKIDS teaches is important for all of us to know ... We need to train our children to be safe. If we save even one child, we’ve done our part as a community."
The next radKIDS class is scheduled for this Saturday, however it was filled to capacity months in advance. Heyland confirmed additional classes will be added and information on York radKIDS will be posted at www.compassion4children.org.
Heyland said she is very grateful for the businesses that have supported the initiative through donations and fund-raisers, as well as the many community volunteers who have helped behind the scenes.
"I am humbled by the many volunteers and community members who have worked very hard to bring this to fruition and I am very excited about teaching the program - as the reward comes from seeing the children really excited about being in the radKIDS program," Heyland said. "As they become empowered by the program, they become proud to call themselves a ‘radKID’ after graduation."
To those ends, Compassion 4 Children will host a special event for parents on Wednesday, Oct. 19, when John and Magi Bish will come to York to share their very personal parent perspective after their daughter Molly was abducted and killed in 2000.
For more on "Molly’s Story and the Missing Children of New England," radKIDS or any other upcoming Compassion 4 Children events, check out www.compassion4children.org.
