By SPEAKIN’ OUT NEWS
Gov. Kay Ivey has awarded $2.26 million in grant funding to nine nonprofit organizations across Alabama that provide professional care and advocacy services for children who have experienced abuse, neglect and exploitation.
The grants, announced Wednesday, will support child advocacy centers and service providers that offer safe environments for children to receive counseling, medical care, forensic interviews and assistance through the legal process.
“Children who have been abused need a place where they feel safe to share what happened to them and receive needed assistance,” Ivey said. “I am pleased to award these funds to groups that are proven champions for children and play a vital role in bringing offenders to justice.”
The funding is being administered by the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs (ADECA) using funds from the U.S. Department of Justice. ADECA Director Kenneth Boswell emphasized the importance of the organizations’ work in helping children heal and supporting successful prosecution of offenders.
“These organizations provide everything from prevention to counseling to help with prosecution,” Boswell said. “ADECA stands with Gov. Ivey in support of the professionals who help children heal from these terrible crimes.”
Grant Recipients and Award Amounts
- Alabama Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) Network — $1,291,991 to support a statewide program based in Opelika serving 23 counties through trained volunteer advocates.
- Family Counseling Center of Mobile Inc. — $255,479 to provide counseling, group therapy and court assistance for child abuse victims and non-offending parents in Mobile County.
- Butterfly Bridge Children’s Advocacy Center — $198,945 to offer therapy, medical services, forensic interviews and expert testimony in Autauga, Chilton and Elmore counties.
- Twin Cedars Youth and Family Services Inc. — $175,224 (two grants) for prevention, advocacy and residential services in Lee and Macon counties, including support for human trafficking victims.
- Tri-County Children’s Advocacy Center — $109,352 to assist investigations, provide victim services and conduct prevention education in Chambers, Clay, Coosa, Randolph and Tallapoosa counties.
- Pike Regional Child Advocacy Center — $80,424 to serve Barbour, Bullock, Coffee and Pike counties, including cases involving trafficking and kidnapping.
- Central Alabama Regional Child Advocacy Center — $77,603 to conduct forensic interviews and provide services in Bibb, Dallas, Hale, Perry and Wilcox counties.
- Regional Child Advocacy Center — $67,020 to provide emotional support, prosecution assistance and community education in Choctaw, Clarke and Washington counties.
State officials say the grants reinforce Alabama’s commitment to protecting vulnerable children and strengthening the network of professionals dedicated to their recovery.