IT COULD HAVE BEEN YOUR CHILD

Was this the boy in St Augustine?  I didn't see the article.  It's time for the Schools to re-examine their fund raising efforts.  Kids are told to not solicit to strangers or door to door but c'mon.......unless Mom & Dad carry the stuff to work kids have a "small circle" of people they truly know and the draw of cheap prizes is just too tempting for those kids to pay attention, especially kids that don't have alot.  Even Parents who tell their kids to not go door to door cannot control them once they're out that door.  If this is the same situation I am thinking of the boy knew his attacker, he'd been at his house before several times. 

I understand the reasoning for fund raising, but it's time for it to evolve with the reality of the world today.  I never let my kids sell that stuff, I would purchase, and let them ask my close friends if they wanted to and that is where it ended. 

Maybe I was just born paranoid and sexist, I have always looked cross-eyed at any adult (most especially a male) that took an over the top interest in my kids, and I have been a Mother for nearly 27yrs.  95% are exactly who they appear to be but it only takes once to have your child scarred for life.  Those who truly care about your child will welcome the scrutiny. 

When my son, who will turn 23 in a couple of weeks, was about to be born, I prepared a series of news stories ahead of time so I could take a few days off from the newspaper.  My editor at the time suggested a series on the sexual abuse of children.  The more research I did, the more shocked I was.

I wanted a picture of a group of children to demonstrate how many would be sexually abused in Clay County.  I called Orange Park Elementary School to see if I could get a photo of all the school's students, but discovered OPES simply didn't have enough students to represent the number of child victims Clay County averaged in a single year.  And that was more than two decades ago.

We occasionally hear a story like the one Endinfin relayed here, but the sad fact is that for every one we hear about, there are probably a hundred Clay County kids whose victimization doesn't make the news.

The problem of adults targeting children is much, much more pervasive than most normal adults (non-pedophiles) believe.  It is an almost silent epidemic tearing at the fabric of society.

The preventative steps offered by Endenfin and Marsha are moves in the right direction, but there is still a lot of work to be done in order to safeguard our children.  It is a societal problem, and one that must be confronted by more than families trying to protect their own children.  It requires a consistent and stronger community effort to reinforce what children learn at home.

I think schools should discontinue the practice.  But, if children are going to solicit door to door, the parents should be with them.  Even my next door neighbor stood in front of my house when his daughter rang my doorbell selling discount cards for the volleyball team.  It's the same when the children are selling GS cookies.  We cannot "over-protect" our kids.  What happened to that child is horrendous.  It's sad that we live in such times, but it's a fact, like Marsha stated that 5% out there can ruin hundreds of little lives.  :(

IT IS NOT ONLY THE FACT THAT THE KIDS TODAY ARE 24-7 THREATENED BY PREDATORS, BUT ALSO THE INDIFERENCE OF SOME ADULTS WHEN IS ABOUT FACING THIS PROBLEM. "IT WON'T HAPPEN TO ME" IS IN THE BACK OF THEIR MINDS EVEN IF THEY DO NOT ADMIT IT. THAT MOTHER FROM ST. AUGUSTINE BROKE MY HEART LAST NICHT. THIS IS SOMETHING THAT DOESN'T GO AWAY, STAYS WITH YOU FOREVER! AND THE SAD PART IS THAT IT COULD HAVE BEEN AVOIDED BY JUST FOLLOWING THE SAFETY RULES ABOVE. I AM AS PARANOID AS YOU ARE WHEN IT IS ABOUT MY KIDS AND GRANDKIDS! I DON'T LET MY SON OUT WITHOUT HIS WALKIE TALKE AND I AM WATCHING HIM LIKE A HAWK WHEN HE IS OUTSIDE PLAYING WITH HIS FRIENDS. WHAT WORRIES ME TO DEATH IS THAT WHEN HE COMES BACK HOME AFTER AN HOUR OR SO, I CAN SEE HOW EVEN THE LITTLE ONES STILL OUT THERE RIDING THEIR BIKES WITH ABSOLUTELY NO SUPERVISION! IT JUST MAKES ME SICK ON MY STOMACH TO IMAGINE ALL THE DANGERS THESE KIDS  ARE EXPOSED TO: FROM, GETTING RAN OVER BY A VEHICLE TO BEING ABDUCTED BY A  PREDATOR. I BELIEVE WE NEED MORE AWARNESS AS PARENTS AND REALIZE  WHAT IT IS OUT THERE JUST WAITING TO HARM OUR KIDS. AND THIS GOES FOR THE SCHOOLS TOO! WHEN THEY TRY TO MAKE A PROFIT HAVING THE KIDS SELL ALL THAT STUFF. SOME THINGS HAVE TO CHANGE BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE!

After reading Endenfin's posting, I logged onto the FDLE website and ran offenders and predators within five miles of the elementary school (I live one block from the school.) It'd been awhile since I had done that.

I was shocked.

There were 33 registered offenders and predators within a five-mile radius. I expected a "number" of them but not 33. Of those, 3 were convicted predators. So I couldn't help myself. I looked up each offender, studied their face, reviewed their convictions and generally, made myself aware of who they are and what they look like.

I've decided to have my youngest son look at the photos, too. He needs to know who they are and seek the attention of a caring adult if one is around.

I don't believe as parents we can back off this one. I strongly believe its my job to make sure my child is as well prepared as he can be for any eventuality. I live a block away from the school and I walk him all the way to class. No ifs, ands, or buts...

Cautious? Yes. Overkill? I don't think so. I'd rather walk him into safety and arm him with knowledge than pick up the pieces after a tragedy.

The website to check your neighborhood is offender.fdle.state.fl.us/offender .

Mike, you're right, there is much to be done, however the entire problem can't be fixed in one single swoop and sometimes good people do nothing because they think the issue is too complex to make a difference.

There is another thread going on here about FIHS and just who is responsible for what and to what degree.  The school does not force the student to participate in fund raisers but they certainly endorse the competition in order to boost sales. There is competition not only on the individual level but class against class as many times there is a "Pizza or Ice Cream Party" to the group that sells the most.  The school and the company who is selling their wares through these students all have the disclaimer of what they've warned the child to not do but I just don't think that is enough anymore.  Schools are getting involved in Students activities outside the walls of the school, kids are getting expelled for inappropriate pictures that are posted on public websites etc, they'll even haul your kid in if they say something in a public forum that breaks a school rule. So it's time for them to also take additional responsibility in their fund raising techniques. 

Alot of people failed that little boy, most did not intend to but the damage is done.  It's time for the Schools, School Board, etc to step up to the plate.  It's time for Parents to start either voicing concerns, or round filing the stuff.  When they can't raise any money that way, they'll find another. 

Like Key2life, I did the same search, and was horrified to learn how many (not as many as he found) but, still one is too many.

Another concern I have about the children riding their bikes.  One would think the driver's in subdivisions would, at the very least, not travel not more than 5 mi. over the limit.  But, no, they FLY through.  I would personally pay for speed bumps if it would save one child from being hit.  This is a relatively new one we live in, so as yet we don't have any say with HOA.

Having read all the comments the other day, I thought I would look at the local and national statistics on offenders/predators on the CCSO website and the Justice Department website (mainly because I'm just a big nerd).

 Based on what I read on both their websites, it is still more likely that a child will be preyed uopn by a family member, other relative or known family friend than a completel stranger.  In fact, in Clay County last year it happened 87% of the time and what I read on the Justice Department's website seemed to confirm this as well.  I thought that this was a totally scary thought - more so than the "stranger" scenarios that seem to get so much press and hype.

Also, another thing that the Justice Department website reported was that sexual offenders (not predators) were less likely to reoffend than almost all other types of offenders (including all violent offenders).  Again, not what we hear from our politicians or the media outlets.

Now I'm left with what to believe.  I understand that statistics can say whatever the author wants them to but some sort of "complete" story needs to be done so that parents and the general public have the facts to help them decide how to best protect their children without the "panic bell" that is rung every few weeks.  That only helps to add to the low level of interest by alot of the public that was mentioned in earlier comments.

Until then, the precautions that Endenfin mentioned are sound advice and I have to agree that I'm always amazed at the lack of parental supervision for the "door-to-door" school sales.  We were pleasantly suprized this past weekend when the whole family (Mom, Dad, little sisters and family pet) were there with a young Cub Scout on his Pack popcorn sales.

The CCSO statistics can be found on their website and the Justice Department site is www.csom.org.

As a kid walking home from school I would see how long I could kick a rock down the road before it would hit the ditch. I live on a road with very little traffic, and less than four blocks from my grandson’s bus stop, and it’s not safe for him too walk home, all because of perverts.

            If it’s not safe for a child to walk home from school, then just imagine the dangers of your child trying to sell something for a school fund raiser. Sure the School advises you not to let your child sell door to door, but if they don’t; just how much could they sell by targeting Aunt Nelly, Uncle Jim, and Billy Bob? How much could they raise, $20.00 $30.00 at the most? Schools need to change the way they raise funds. There is an alternative. I wrote this in a blog in April 2007, so consider it posted as such, it is C&P, but it worked.     

Submitted by winn1955 on Sat, 04/07/2007 - 12:18am.As a grandfather that has raised four children I can tell you that fund raising is a pain in the butt. If the kids don't eat the chocolate they lose it. As an involved parent of a Sarasota County School we, the school advisory committee decided to try a new approach. Instead of a fund raiser, at the beginning of the school year we ask the parents to give a minimum of $20.00.. Most parents gave more and some gave less. The program worked well. It stopped the door to door fundraisers and the school received the funds that they needed. In the middle of the year the school would hold a carnival. that took care of the rest of the money needed for the year. And me I got peace of mind. I didn't have to try to keep up with four children trying to sell stuff. So vwwife I disagree, you don't have to have fund raiser to get the school what they need . If you try this approach I think you will find parents more that willing to donate to the school for there own peace of mind.