Children are NOT for Sale! Give up Coffee For a Day and Help Save a Life #ChildrenAreNOTForSale

 

Devereux Georgia provides sophisticated treatment for youth in Atlanta and from around the country who have been victims of sexual exploitation.

 

 Kennesaw, GA – On June 1, 2015, Devereux Georgia will launch the CHILDREN ARE NOT FOR SALE Campaign.

Children and adolescents are being sold into a $150 billion annual market for sex and labor. This is happening globally, and domestically; in urban and suburban areas. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Atlanta, Georgia, is the No. 1 major hub of human and sex trafficking in the United States.

Devereux Georgia’s Residential CSEC (Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children) Program provides sophisticated treatment for youth from around the country who have experienced emotional, physical and sexual trauma.

In recent years, there has been a steady increase in referrals of children and adolescents who have been commercially sexually exploited. Youth who lived through the experience of being commercially sexually exploited have very specific treatment needs that includes a protected living environment that provides a sense of security and predictability, and treatment strategies designed to help them understand victimization; empowering them to create a different life.

“Devereux Georgia is the only Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facility offering a specific CSEC treatment track in Georgia With this campaign, we need to raise at least $10,000 to provide items that will  improve the quality of life of these youth who have endured so much.  Your $5 donation will help provide a child with new socks, t-shirts, school supplies or a stuffed animal.  Larger donations will provide dental care, replacement eye glasses, winter coats, non-covered prescription drugs or off-campus trips.  Please help us create a better future for these youth and for the society we share with them,” says Gwendolyn B. Skinner, Executive Director – Devereux Georgia.

To learn more about the #ChildrenAreNotForSale Campaign, contact Nedra Wooten, visit the Devereux Georgia website or Facebook page.

Call to Action

The CHILDREN ARE NOT FOR SALE Campaign will raise awareness of this issue. This campaign is designed to enlighten Metro Atlanta about the work being done at Devereux Georgia to combat this issue. On June 1, 2015, we invite you to join us via social media and email to donate $5 (the cost of a cup of coffee) and share this message:

I give up coffee today to save a life. Support Devereux Georgia, #CHILDRENARENOTFORSALE! I challenge @FriendName http://goo.gl/OvLV0Q (optional: attach a selfie/photo of you with the attached campaign sign)

Dr. Yolanda Graham, Medical Director – Devereux Georgia says “the sexual exploitation of children is one of our world’s most horrific crimes, with an estimated 1.5 million children impacted. The more we begin to ask the question the more we find that it is happening in every state, in both rural and suburban areas. All too often, children are robbed of their childhood and then blamed for the crime. Most children are recruited within 48 hours of running away from home or through social media and technology. As a country, we have to do more to reduce supply and demand, but we also have to do more treat those that have already been harmed. Devereux provides just that…. a fighting chance. We hope that you join us in this fight to eradicate modern day slavery.”

About Devereux Georgia

The Devereux Georgia Treatment Network (Devereux Georgia), is part of the Devereux Foundation, Inc., one of the nation’s leading nonprofit behavioral health organizations with 13 centers in 11 states.   Devereux Georgia is located on a beautiful, secure, 40-acre campus just northwest of Atlanta. Our continuum of care includes a Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facility (PRTF), Specialty Foster Care Program, Therapeutic Group Homes, and AdvancED-Accredited School.  The PRTF treats youth who are experiencing severe emotional/behavioral challenges brought on by sexual exploitation, mental illness, abuse, neglect,  and intellectual / developmental disabilities.  Our Specialty Foster Care Program provides training and supports to foster parents to meet the physical, emotional and social needs of youth in a supportive family setting until the natural family can be reunited or permanency through adoption can be achieved. Therapeutic Group Homes provide behavioral health services to youth who cannot be served in their own homes but are appropriate to receive those services in a community setting (three within the secure campus; one in the community).

Through individualized treatment plans and services provided by Devereux Georgia, youth develop the competency and confidence to achieve once-unthinkable goals such as literacy, graduation from high school, or the acquisition of basic job readiness skills to become successful and productive members of our community.

Since 1973, Devereux Georgia has treated our nation’s most troubled youth and offered them:  NEW HOPES…NEW DREAMS…NEW CHOICES…