Urbana nonprofit receives award to protect children from sexual abuse

URBANA, Ill. (WAND) — An Urbana non-profit received an award to help protect children from sexual abuse.

Rape Advocacy, Counseling & Education Services (RACES) received a Darkness to Light Advocacy Award to help protect children through education, awareness, and community engagement.

RACES is a community based non-profit with the mission to provide support to those affected by sexual trauma. It offers prevention and response services across Champaign, Douglas, Ford and Piatt counties.

As a recipient of the award, RACES will be able to provide proven prevention training to adults throughout east central Illinois empowering them to protect the children in their lives and prevent child sexual abuse before it happens, according to the organization.

Through the scholarship award, RACES said it aims to train 100 community members in how to recognize, respond to, and prevent child sexual abuse (CSA) via Darkness to Light's Stewards of Children training.

"This training empowers adults to build safer, more protective communities for future generations," said RACES Prevention Educator Coordinator Abbi Littell. "I'd encourage anyone who works with youth to participate — not only to strengthen their ability to recognize and respond to child sexual abuse, but also to assess the spaces young people spend time in — schools, daycares, places of worship, play spaces, and more — and identify ways to improve safety for everyone."

Anyone interested in learning more about the training or scheduling a training can email alittell@cu-races.org for more information.