Gulf Coast Children’s Advocacy Center logo | Gulf Coast Children’s Advocacy Center in Panama City, Florida operates on the fundamental belief that the best interests of the a victim should be protected. Gulf Coast Children’s Advocacy Center (CAC) provides a compassionate alternative to traditional investigations.

Silent Epidemic-News Herald

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PANAMA CITY – On Sunday evenings, Lori Allen sits down to scan national news headlines, looking for any case involving serious child abuse or child homicide.
Allen, executive director of the Gulf Coast Children’s Advocacy Center, can usually guess the facts of a case just by reading the headline. On a child homicide, the perpetrator generally will be a non-related caregiver – typically a boyfriend. There’s usually a history of maternal substance abuse, previous instances of domestic violence at the home and the child usually will be 2 years old or younger.
Last year, the exact situation played out in Calhoun County, when 2-year old Anya Dziura was killed by her mother’s boyfriend, Stephen Young. Young pleaded no contest to aggravated manslaughter of a child, while Jessica Dziura, the girl’s mother, was given a six-year sentence for child neglect.
Reports and substantiated instances of child abuse in Bay County have increased during the past several years. In the last six months of 2015, the Department of Children and Families received 1,345 reports of child maltreatment, including neglect, physical and sexual abuse. Of those claims, 151 were substantiated with a serious finding from DCF. In the first six months of this year, there already have been 1,566 calls, and 172 serious findings.
Allen, whose organization sees referrals from the six-county area of Circuit 14, saw just more than 1,100 children in 2014. Last year, 1,325 children were referred to them, and this year, they’re on pace to break 1,500 cases. But, Allen said, it’s not just about the numbers.
“People look at those statistics and they think, ‘Wow that’s really tragic,’ ” she said. “When you put a face and a name and an experience to that … there are some schools that don’t even have that many children enrolled.”

Gulf Coast Children’s Advocacy Center logo | Gulf Coast Children’s Advocacy Center in Panama City, Florida operates on the fundamental belief that the best interests of the a victim should be protected. Gulf Coast Children’s Advocacy Center (CAC) provides a compassionate alternative to traditional investigations.

Making life easier for the Johnson Family-WJHG

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JACKSON COUNTY, Fla. (WJHG/WECP) A Jackson County family’s life was changed Saturday, thanks to the assistance of the community, who came together to build a ramp to help make life for a young boy and his family a little bit easier. Three-year-old Bryson Johnson has seen some hard times in his short life. At seven-months-old, he suffered disabling injuries at the hands of his mother’s paramour, that left him wheelchair bound for the rest of his life. Since then, this young boy has been surrounded by the love and support of his family, and now, the community.

“This is a community project,” says Jackson County Sheriff’s Investigator Cheree Edwards. “It takes the deputies, it takes the people that are here working, it takes LuAnne, and I know that it is what is going to be a blessing to them.”

“As a family advocate, we’re here just to make our families happy and do whatever it is they need,” explains Family Advocate, LuAnne Dean, with the Gulf Coast Children’s Advocacy Center. “They want this baby safe. They want him to stay in a safe place, and now we are here to do whatever it takes.

Gulf Coast Children’s Advocacy Center logo | Gulf Coast Children’s Advocacy Center in Panama City, Florida operates on the fundamental belief that the best interests of the a victim should be protected. Gulf Coast Children’s Advocacy Center (CAC) provides a compassionate alternative to traditional investigations.

Headliners Announced for 6th Annual “Stars & Guitars”

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Please join us for our 6th Annual Stars & Guitars benefit concert sponsored by Eastern Shipbuilding Group! One of a kind show, all talent on the stage, singing your favorites in an acoustic setting. Hear the stories behind the music, and all to benefit our local children served by the Gulf Coast Children’s Advocacy Center.

Tickets on sale August 5th at for lodging and ticket packages at the following locations: Holiday Inn (Panama City), Hilton Garden Inn, Rodeway Inn.

Tickets on sale August 12th for tickets only at:
www.marinaciviccenter.com or at their box office location, 9 Harrison Avenue beginning at 9AM.