Texas is home to 71 Children’s Advocacy Centers – as unique as the communities they serve.
Child Abuse in Texas
- Today, 175 Texas children will be victims of abuse.
- In 2018, 58,432 children received services from one of the children's advocacy centers across the state of Texas.
- 1 in 10 children will be sexually abused before their 18th birthday. This would equal 740,000 children in Texas.
Our Impact
A children’s advocacy center is the ONE non-profit to serve as the first stop for children entering the justice system because of suspected sexual abuse, severe physical abuse, and those who have witnessed a violent crime. In FY18, 58,432 children received critical services at a Texas children’s advocacy center. The network of 71 Texas CACs now officially serves 201 counties where 98% of the Texas population resides.
- 67% of children seen by CACs were involved in sexual abuse cases
- 98% of child victims knew their alleged perpetrator
- 21% were not old enough to attend kindergarten
- 327 children were involved in sex trafficking
Each of us has one thing in common. Each has a table that functions as a regular meeting place for people who care. These tables welcome law enforcement officers, Child Protective Services (CPS) investigators, prosecutors, forensic interviewers, medical experts, and therapists. All of these individuals are united in one guiding goal – to win justice for the victims of child abuse and place them on a path toward healing.
These round table discussions are at the heart of the Children’s Advocacy Center of Van Zandt County (CACVZC), and the results are truly life changing. It is the mission of the Children's Advocacy Center of Van Zandt County, Inc. to reduce trauma to child victims of physical and sexual abuse through a unified effort that facilitates thorough investigations, effective prosecution, and the healing of children and their families.
Van Zandt County is home to 54,355 individuals (July 2016 Census). There are 3,098 children under the age of 5 and 12,610 under the age of 18. Without your support, we could not provide services for child victims of sexual and physical abuse and neglect in our communities. Please consider taking your seat at the CACVZC table and providing support to child victims of abuse and neglect in Van Zandt County.