Season’s
greetings friends. I’m Ed Burr, Founder and President of the Board at the
Monique Burr Foundation for Children, Inc. We would like to wish everyone a
Merry Christmas and in doing so spend a few moments reflecting on the gifts we have
been given as an organization this past year… our facilitators and schools that
have implemented our Speak Up Be Safe™ bullying and child abuse prevention
program, our donors and sponsors, volunteers, and our terrific team. Each
of our team members brings so much to our foundation and our program and we
thought it was a great time for them to share a bit about themselves and what
they think is important about our work.
Lynn Layton – Executive Director
Greetings! I am Lynn Layton, the executive director of
the foundation, wife of Glenn Layton and mom to Clark Fouraker and Mallory
Layton. I have been with the foundation
for five years. I have the honor of
working with Ed, our Board of Directors, and our team to help protect children from bullying and child abuse. I am blessed
with the love of my Savior, my family, my friends and the continued success and
provisions that we receive to allow our work to continue. Speak Up Be Safe is provided to public
elementary schools at no cost to the school through the help of our donors and
grants we receive; we hope to keep it that way!
My prevention wish this
season is that as a country, we can stop for a few minutes, put down our
electronic devices and actually have eye contact with our children to help them
understand that communicating with each other is best when done with our voices
and not our fingers. Teaching kids that instant
response is not necessary and that patience is a virtue is a wonderful gift we
can give children this season.
In fact, there a lot of
gifts we adults have to offer children, such as honest conversations. The world can be a scary place and children
need to know that adults are there to help keep them safe. We need to get over being uncomfortable talking
about scary topics because if we don’t talk to them, someone else will and most
likely, they will share harmful or incorrect information. We can get involved and ask our child’s
school what prevention programs they offer students. We can “show up” for our children – get educated,
be aware, talk to them often, and advocate for safety and prevention. Merry Christmas and Best Wishes for a safe
and informed 2013!
Amy Raymond – Administrative Assistant
Cheers! I’m Amy and I have been with the Foundation
for one year in my position with the goal of supporting the team to fulfill our
vision. It’s a great time of year for
individuals, families, and organizations to reflect upon their successes and ongoing
goals. Every day working in this field brings
new challenges, but with it great rewards. During my time here, my eyes have
been opened to the risks our children face on a daily basis; however, I’ve
learned that what we do at the Foundation literally changes children’s lives
for the better. My wish this holiday
season is that every caregiver recognizes the importance of expressing love and
taking the time to nurture children – and not just during the holidays, but
every day. This is the core of what
creates healthy, happy kids and promotes a safe and healthy community.
Cori Wilson – Finance/Data Manager
Hi, I’m Cori Wilson, I manage all things data
related at MBF and at home I manage a four-year old little boy. I'd like to share with
you what I consider a cause for celebration this Christmas, our work at MBF. For
some reason, be it ignorance, fear, or disbelief, I see the reality of bullying and child
abuse largely ignored during most people’s every day lives. Parents teach their children to hold their
hands when crossing the street, but they forget to teach them to talk to them
if they feel scared or confused. However, MBF is changing that for the children
in Florida, and I am proud to celebrate every success along the way with our
team and our supporters.
Each
lesson I learn as a parent, to me is a cause to celebrate as I consider it
another way my child will grow up safer and better protected. I have learned as
a parent of a four year old to not let my fears influence my tongue, because I
have learned if we don’t talk to our children, someone else will. When my child
brings up a scary subject it is tempting to change the subject, but I now know
I must face the issue head on. I give him the truth, with reasons and
reassuring love. He comes out of the conversation with a greater
understanding of the world around him, and he learns he can always come to me
with questions. I hope our knowledge and
learning at MBF will help you as parents in your efforts to protect your
children and give you cause to celebrate this holiday season and year-round!
Mary McDonald – Program Manager
Hi, I’m Mary, a Guardian
Ad Litem volunteer and mom of two. One of the most important lessons I’ve
learned working for MBF and talking to all of our facilitators is that kids
need people they can talk to about the really tough topics that they come
across in their every day lives, things like needing to know what to do and
what to say when faced with peer pressure. They need to know they have someone
to talk to about the “sensitive” topics (everything from - when kids laugh or
make fun of others to what to do when someone presents them with inappropriate
photos, or alcohol or drugs). These are all things that they will be
confronted with and we need to help them be ready when they are put into those
situations. We work very hard to create
great resources on our website that you can use to help you have these
conversations with kids. So this
Christmas when the kids are on school break, spend a little time learning more
about these topics and about how to have these conversations and then spend
some time talking to your children. It
might not be the traditional way to spend your Christmas break but it truly is
one of the most important things you can do to help your kids have a safer day
every day in the New Year. Happy Holidays. I hope you have a great Christmas with
your family.
Callie Criser – Communications & Development
Manager
Hi, I'm Callie Criser
and I coordinate our events, fundraising efforts, and social media sites. I've been with the Foundation 2 1/2 years and
am recently engaged and planning the wedding of my dreams… and since I love
events, I am enjoying every minute of it! I did not know much about child abuse
or bullying until I started here… I never knew anyone who was bullied or abused
– but AWARE is the key word. I grew up
in a small town and went to a very sheltered school that didn't speak of these things. I have since learned 1 in 4 girls and 1 in 6
boys will be sexually abused by the age of 18 and I know abuse and bullying
happens everywhere, even if we are not aware it is happening.
Being the
communications manager, I know that bullying and child abuse have become easier
because of technology. With so many
children getting technology gifts this holiday season, I hope that parents will
teach their children how to use them appropriately and safely. Technology is a wonderful thing, but it can
also be very dangerous. I encourage
everyone to check out our Facebook page and Blog for tips, stories and
resources about this topic and for additional safety information as well
throughout the year. Happy Holidays to you and your loved ones!
Cierra Bennet – Finance/Data Assistant
Hello everyone! My
name is Cierra Bennett and I am the newest member of the MBF team. I feel
like I learn something new everyday and I’d like to share with you what I think
are the real gifts of Christmas: family, friends, and the children in our lives
that make the holidays much brighter!
Working at MBF has
taught me how all of us can truly make a difference by being proactive to
protect children. Kids are faced with tough situations everyday like being
bystanders to bullying for example, and often we can help them, but only if kids
are educated and empowered to help adults keep them safe. Give the kids in your
life the gift of safety education this holiday season; look for every possible
opportunity to communicate with them about safety issues and be available for
them when they want to talk to you about their concerns. Here are a few tips
I've learned while working at MBF:
- Look for everyday opportunities to ask them questions about their day, and ask open-ended questions, like “What is something that you would like to talk about your day today?” or “Was there anything unusual that happened today?”
- Take opportunities to talk about the events that are going on around you that you may see on the news or that kids may ask about.
- During these conversations, take the time to follow up on anything that concerns you with additional questions and discuss strategies kids can use if they are in or see unsafe situations.
Stacy Pendarvis – Education & Research Director
Season’s
Greeting! I'm Stacy Pendarvis and the mother of 3. I've been with the
Foundation for 2 years and worked in the field of prevention for over 17 years.
I love every minute of working to protect children, and I love working
for MBF; I am also the main writer of the Speak Up Be Safe Florida blog and
it’s one of the things about my job I love the most. But what I would really love to see this
holiday season (and after this year of such powerful and negative media
coverage) is every single person in our country involved to some degree in the
effort to protect children from bullying and maltreatment, because everyone can
do something. Awareness is great and I think people know the problems exist, but
they do not act for whatever reason – maybe apathy or lack of knowledge about
what to do. However, AWARENESS WITH
ACTION = PREVENTION! So I hope
everyone reading this will make it one of your resolutions in the New Year to
learn more and do more to protect kids!
Keep reading the blog and our MBF Facebook page throughout the New Year
for easy ideas on how to incorporate prevention into your everyday life. Wishing all the best to you and yours in the
New Year. Merry Christmas!
Just as The Monique Burr
Foundation for Children, Inc. was founded in 1997 as a way to carry on the work
of my late wife, Monique Burr, a passionate child advocate, you can see our
team and our organization epitomizes the work that Monique did in protecting
children. Our Speak Up Be Safe™ bullying
and child abuse prevention program and everything we do is dedicated to educating
and empowering adults and children with one goal in mind, keeping kids
safe. Our team works hard every day, all
year to make sure children, parents, schools and communities have the tools and
resources they need to protect children.
It is a gift to be able to
educate and give back to the community, it is a gift to know what we are doing
is helping to protect children every day, it is a gift to work with such a
hardworking and dedicated team that is truly making a difference in children’s
lives – and it is a gift to continue the legacy of Monique Burr.
Merry Christmas to you, your
children, and your loved ones from all of us at the Monique Burr Foundation for
Children!
Edward Burr
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