{"id":436813,"date":"2025-05-06T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-05-06T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/?p=436813"},"modified":"2025-05-06T08:52:13","modified_gmt":"2025-05-06T08:52:13","slug":"usag-japan-team-unites-to-raise-awareness-of-child-abuse-prevention-month","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/?p=436813","title":{"rendered":"USAG Japan team unites to raise awareness of Child Abuse Prevention Month"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n USAG Japan leadership, Army Community Service staff and community members walk in solidarity on Camp Zama during the \u201cWalk With a purpose\u201d event April 24 hosted as part of Child Abuse Prevention Month.
\n (Photo Credit: Noriko Kudo)<\/span>
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\n VIEW ORIGINAL<\/a>
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CAMP ZAMA, Japan \u2013 The Army Community Service team here hosted several events throughout the month of April to raise community awareness during National Child Abuse Prevention Month.<\/p>\n

Dr. Justin Cole, Family Advocacy Program manager, said the month began with the signing of a proclamation by U.S. Army Garrison Commander Col. Marcus Hunter and Command Sgt. Maj. Rick Meeker on April 1.<\/p>\n

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\n A girl bowls at the Camp Zama Bowling Center April 18 during a \u201cStrike Out Child Abuse\u201d event Army Community Service hosted as part of Child Abuse Prevention Month.
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Other major events included the \u201cStrike Out Child Abuse\u201d bowling event April 18 and the \u201cWalk With Purpose\u201d event April 23, in which USAG Japan leadership and community members marched throughout the installation in solidarity to raise awareness.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve had a good turnout [all month],\u201d Cole said. \u201cOverall, it\u2019s been a very positive experience.\u201d<\/p>\n

The events were meant to spread the word on related resources available to the community and raise awareness of the stressors, issues and challenges military communities can sometimes face.<\/p>\n

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\n USAG Japan leadership, Army Community Service staff and community members pose for a photo on Camp Zama during the \u201cWalk With a purpose\u201d event April 24 hosted as part of Child Abuse Prevention Month.
\n (Photo Credit: Noriko Kudo)<\/span>
\n <\/span>
\n VIEW ORIGINAL<\/a>
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\n <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201c[Prevention] starts at the very smallest individual for us to make a macro change,\u201d Cole said. \u201cYou make a difference.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cole is a mandated reporter of child abuse and neglect in his profession, but he believes everybody in their community has a duty to report any instances they see or of which they are otherwise aware.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery person has a responsibility to take care of each other,\u201d Cole said. \u201cThis is all of our fight.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\n A Soldier bowls at the Camp Zama Bowling Center April 18 during a \u201cStrike Out Child Abuse\u201d event Army Community Service hosted as part of Child Abuse Prevention Month.
\n (Photo Credit: Noriko Kudo)<\/span>
\n <\/span>
\n VIEW ORIGINAL<\/a>
\n <\/span>
\n <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

Angela Heck, a community member who participated in the Walk With Purpose, said she thinks the ACS team does a great job of bringing awareness about a wide range of important topics to Camp Zama.<\/p>\n

\u201cA walk is a great way to enjoy our beautiful base, chat with other community members, and support a cause like Child Abuse Prevention Month,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

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\n \"USAG
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\n Army Community Service staff pose for a photo at the Camp Zama Bowling Center April 18 during a \u201cStrike Out Child Abuse\u201d event Army Community Service hosted as part of Child Abuse Prevention Month.
\n (Photo Credit: Noriko Kudo)<\/span>
\n <\/span>
\n VIEW ORIGINAL<\/a>
\n <\/span>
\n <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

ACS staff noted during opening remarks at the event that child abuse can happen even in small, tight-knit communities. But Heck said she appreciated their optimistic message that those communities are stronger when they stand together to protect their most vulnerable members.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt made me feel like I\u2019m a part of the team,\u201d Heck said, \u201cand that my actions to prevent child abuse could have a positive impact.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

USAG Japan leadership, Army Community Service staff and community members walk in solidarity on Camp Zama during the \u201cWalk With a purpose\u201d event April 24 hosted as part of Child Abuse Prevention Month. (Photo Credit: Noriko Kudo) VIEW ORIGINAL CAMP ZAMA, Japan \u2013 The Army Community Service team here hosted several events throughout the month […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":436815,"comment_status":"close","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-436813","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/436813","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=436813"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/436813\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":436821,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/436813\/revisions\/436821"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/436815"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=436813"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=436813"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adn.monetizemail.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=436813"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}