Champions for Children Walk raises awareness about Will County Children’s Advocacy Center

in

May 20

JOLIET – Forty-five people participated in a 10-mile walk through Joliet on a windy but sunny Sunday (May 18) to raise awareness and funding for the Will County Children’s Advocacy Center.

All money raised from the Champions for Children walk will be used to support the Children’s Advocacy Center, which was established in 1995 by Will County State’s Attorney James Glasgow to provide services for children who are the victims of sexual and physical abuse.

The not-for-profit center’s professionally trained staff interviews these young and vulnerable victims in a non-suggestive, non-threatening environment. Their recorded statements have been used in the successful prosecution of literally hundreds of sexual predators in Will, Grundy and Kendall counties over the past 13 years.

Participants kicked off the walk in front of the Will County Courthouse at about 9:30 a.m. Sunday and hiked 10 miles across Joliet’s East Side. State’s Attorney Glasgow, who also serves as president of the Children’s Advocacy Center’s Board, welcomed the crowd and thanked them for their support.

“It was great to see a large turnout for a walk that raises awareness about the center’s important work,” Glasgow said after the event. “The Children’s Advocacy Center plays a critical role in bringing sexual predators to justice while providing important counseling services to the victims of abuse.”

The Will County walk was one leg of a four-day statewide awareness and fundraising event sponsored by the Children’s Advocacy Centers of Illinois. The event began in Springfield on Friday, May 16 and arrived in Will County on Sunday, May 18. Walkers asked people for pledges of support with a minimum of $1 per mile.

Elected officials who cut the ribbon to kick off the Will County Champions for Children Walk were: State’s Attorney Glasgow; State Senator Linda Holmes, who sponsored a bill that allows counties to assess court fines on convicted defendants to fund child advocacy centers; Will County Executive Larry Walsh; Joliet Police Chief Fred Hayes; and Will County Treasurer Pat McGuire.