BJACH plants pinwheel garden, committed to ending child abuse

Photo By Jean Graves | Bayne-Jones Army Community Hospital hosted a pinwheel planting and fellowship April 4 at the Joint Readiness Training Center and Fort Polk, Louisiana. During the event, three dozen purple pinwheels were planted in the ground near in honor of Child Abuse Prevention Month and the Month of the Military Child.  

FORT POLK, LA, UNITED STATES

04.04.2022

Story by Jean Graves 

Medical Readiness Command, West

FORT POLK, La. – Bayne-Jones Army Community Hospital hosted a pinwheel planting and fellowship April 4 at the Joint Readiness Training Center and Fort Polk, Louisiana.

During the event, three dozen purple pinwheels were planted in the ground near the hospital entrance by the Fort Polk Area Home-school Group.

Tiffany Koch, school liaison officer for JRTC and Fort Polk said pinwheels are the national symbol for child abuse prevention because they represent playfulness and joy serving as a physical reminder that all children deserve a great childhood.

Purple pinwheels were chosen because April is also the month of the military child. Koch said purple represents military children of all branches by combining the blue shades associated with the U.S. Air Force, Navy and Coast Guard along with Army green and Marine Corps red.

The event was a first for the hospital and the idea of Abigail Lust, Campbellsville University social work intern with the BJACH behavioral health department.

Lust, a military spouse, said she has two kids who are experiencing unique difficulties early in their lives. She acknowledged that having a deployed parent is something non-military children cannot comprehend.

“As military families we deal with additional stressors that put kids in a higher risk category for abuse,” she said. “As a social work student my natural instinct is service and social justice. I wanted to do something to honor military kids and help prevent child abuse in my current position.”

Lust said hosting a pinwheel planting at BJACH was important because everyone in the hospital has an obligation to prevent child abuse so they are never in the position to use their mandated reporter status.

Trish Sheppard, licensed clinical social worker with the Child, Adolescent and Family behavioral health program at BJACH was the guest speaker for the event.

Sheppard, a military spouse and mother of five, said she understands the unique trials military family members go through and focused her remarks on the resources available to help combat stressors that can lead to child abuse.

“It is not uncommon for a military family member to be separated from their spouses and children for six, nine or 12 months at a time,” she said. “If you are feeling lost, alone or hurting and need help; there are many resources here on Fort Polk to help, no matter how big or small you think the problem is.”

Sheppard discussed parenting, marriage and finance classes available at Army Community Service, the New Parent Support Program and unit chaplains as helpful resources available within the Fort Polk community.

“Every one of the resources I’ve mentioned can provide training and skill that will reduce the likelihood of child abuse and neglect,” she said. “We are not all born with the skills needed to navigate a stressful military environment, let alone the skills for parenting. Kids do not come with a ‘how to book’, so having a supportive community that offers tools, services and guidance is amazing.”

Command Sgt. Maj. Shavonda Devereaux, senior enlisted advisor for BJACH said the event was a huge success.

“Recognizing our children who suffer from child abuse is important,” she said. “This event shows our community that we stand against abuse in all forms and are all-in to end child abuse.”

Devereaux said the pinwheel garden at BJACH will be a reminder to the staff and patients throughout the month of April that the entire military community has a role to play in recognizing the signs of child abuse and neglect as well as the stressors that put parents at risk for committing abuse.

“All of us can do our part to prevent child abuse and neglect,” she said. “If someone you know feels unsafe at home you can and should take action to get them help.”

Editor’s note: To report suspected child abuse contact the Fort Polk Hope Line 337-531-HOPE (4673) or contact the state of Louisiana at 855-4LA KIDS (855-452-5437).

• Date Taken: 04.04.2022
• Date Posted: 04.05.2022 16:23
• Story ID: 417879
• Location: FORT POLK, LA, US