By Terra Avilla
In unprecedented times, there is still just as much of a need to protect our communities’ most vulnerable assets. Our children. With April being Child Abuse Prevention Month, I thought that there would be no better time than the present to highlight one of our county’s biggest assets when it comes to helping our local kiddos. The Mikailia Child Advocacy Center or MCAC.
Most of you, I sincerely hope, will never need the Mikailia Advocacy Center. However, for those in our community who have faced the scariest of situations, I am so thankful that we have the center to help cushion their transition into the world of Trauma-informed care, explanation of the legal process, law enforcement interviews, etc.
The MCAC of the Office of the District Attorney in Lassen County is a grant-funded organization that, per their Facebook page, “works in collaboration with other community agencies to support and assist child and developmentally delayed victims through the criminal justice process by utilizing a multi-disciplinary team approach.”
However per Terra Avilla, the Center also creates a safe, child-friendly environment in which all involved agencies (Child and Family Services, the Sheriff’s Office, the Police Department, the DA’s Office and the victim’s family), can effectively collaborate to best serve the victim while aiding the investigating departments.
The Center, which was named after one of Lassen County’s own brave and special survivors, facilitates trainings for law enforcement and parents, all while making sure that victims of the worst types of crimes have a very safe space to tell their story.
Instead of walking into an intimidating police department, a small child can walk into a very pleasant and safe feeling room and speak to a specially trained individual one on one, while other members of the team watch in a nearby room.
I can tell you; I have sat in on many interviews, and the work at our Center matters.
I cannot talk about the Center however, without discussing Krystle Hollandsworth, the Center’s administrator. Krystle has attended hundreds of hours of training, to speak with small children and other vulnerable victims. Krystle, however, goes out of her way to work with other agencies to help educate the public on identifying and stopping child sexual abuse. A pretty worthy cause if you ask me.
COVID-19 or not – Krystle’s work is definitely essential and she is still making sure that any victim who would benefit from the Mikailia Child Advocacy Center has access to it. We should all be thankful for this. Not all communities have a CAC, and the Center’s work is priceless when it comes to helping our victims.
So when the world opens back up again and we have career fairs, or other community events where you see the MCAC booth, please go by and say “hi” to their team. The Center does so much for our community helping those, who more often than not, cannot help themselves. The CAC is a huge asset to me and is also one of the reasons I love the place we live.
