NOTE: If you're not interested in my own personal philosophy or reasons for doing this ride, that's quite all right. You may skip the first four paragraphs and go straight to the HOW YOU CAN HELP section below. I'm much less interested in promulgating my own words than I am in helping children.
It's not easy to explain why I'm riding again. To be honest, it's not quite as simple as "Not enough people were listening the first time." Some of the reasons are the same ones that inspired me to make this ride last year (I'll let you read last year's post for yourself, if you're interested). As I rode a girl's bicycle last year to help me remember that girls are particularly vulnerable to abuse, I'm riding a boy's bicycle this year in honor of the boys who have suffered abuse. Many of them suffer in silence, due to societal standards that present a false standard of masculinity, in which a man must always show himself to be in control, and must never admit that he has been abused or victimized in any way. In the case of sexual abuse, the stigma--and the corresponding need to smother it with silence--is even worse. The truth is that we are all vulnerable, we are all weak, and anyone can become a victim--given the right circumstances.
However, a large part of my present motivation comes from a personal experience I've had this past year in dealing with one instance of abuse in particular (I will not give specifics, so as to preserve the anonymity of the innocent, who have confided information to me that is of a very personal nature--I will only say that the instance in question did not involve any members of my own family). What I have seen, first-hand, is that the abuse of children has effects that are far-reaching. The psychological effects alone can cripple the victim for a lifetime. Moreover, even years down the road, the abuse can tear apart friendships and poison one's faith in other people, even for those who are affected only peripherally. One starts to wonder if there really is any goodness left in humanity, or whether everyone has an "angle," a sense of self-interest which motivates them to do good to others so that some good might come to them.
That's the place where my thought might tend to diverse from the mainstream. While respecting those who are of other opinions, I come from a solidly Christian perspective. While Christian theology acknowledges that we have a fallen sinful nature, it dismisses both the myth of human perfectibility and the opposite error which is called the total depravity of man (while some Calvinists would hold to the latter, they are not in the mainstream). What does this mean in a practical sense? It means that each one of us must submit his or her thoughts to God, and let him purify our motives and intentions. This is not something that we can do on our own--God's grace must "break through" into our Universe in order to do this. That is what the coming of Christ, and the forgiveness that he offered to all people, is all about. We must co-operate with that grace in order for it to do any good, but any truly selfless good that we do is not done apart from Him (this is not to say that a non-believer or atheist cannot do good, but rather, that they do not understand the source of the good that they perform, just as a three-year-old child can perform the act of switching on a light without having a decent theory about electricity).
I will return to my original aim, which was not to write a theological treatise. Rather, the point is that contributing to the well-being of children, both in general and in particular, is less about "doing things" than it is about "being" a certain kind of person. The former is rather easy--you can set a goal and work toward it. For example, you can volunteer a certain number of hours a week, or collect signatures for a petition, or write so many letters to your congressman. And all of those things are great! However, "being" a certain kind of person means that you are doing those things for the right reasons. It means that, when you make that call to CPS, that you are doing it because you care about those children, not because you're trying to become a hero or get back at a child's parents. It means that you give and serve, not so that other people will know or see you, but because it's the right thing to do before God. It means that you do what you can for the children in your own life, both when it's easy and when it's hard.
HOW YOU CAN HELP
This year, I wanted to provide direct links to donate to two of my favorite local organizations that help children, and a third national organization which deals directly with abuse. While neither of the local charities focuses on child abuse specifically, both of them serve at-risk children who are often victims of abuse. While addressing the poverty and material needs of children and their families will not prevent all abuse, it does help to create a culture of caring in which it is acknowledged that all children have intrinsic value. I can also vouch for the fiscal responsibility of both of them--your money will be put to good use and will not be ate up in high administrative salaries (Please know that, while I help out both of these organizations, I have no financial interest in either of them as my work is done solely on a volunteer basis).
1. Ryves Youth Center at Etling Hall
Located at the corner of 14th and Locust in Terre Haute, Indiana, Ryves Youth Center provides hot meals, tutoring services, a full court gym, board games, a bicycle shop, and even a scouting troop for at-risk children in the Terre Haute area. They fall under the umbrella of Catholic Charities in Terre Haute, though children of all beliefs are welcome. In addition to the after school program (which runs until 8 p.m. daily), they also have a full-time preschool which serves homeless and near-homeless children. Both the preschool and the after-school program are always in need of volunteers.
To donate (be sure to select "Ryves Youth Center" from the agency menu): https://secure.acceptiva.com/?cst=3a84a5
For more information about Ryves Youth Center: http://www.archindy.org/cc/ryves/
2. Kid Kare Project
Located at 4th and Blackman in Clinton, Indiana (in the old Clinton High School gym), Kid Kare Project provides a supply center (where families can shop for receive gently used clothes, toys, bicycles, and other household items, free of charge), school supplies, a tutoring program, and a sponsorship program for at-risk children in Vermillion, Parke, and Vigo Counties. The school-year sponsorship program allows you to purchase items throughout the year which will be given directly to your sponsored child. There is also a Christmas sponsor program in which the sponsor provides Christmas gifts for the children. Both sponsors and sponsored children remain anonymous.
To donate: https://npo.justgive.org/kidkareproject
To become a sponsor: http://survey.constantcontact.com/survey/a07e6lr0i6ah96b7hmr/a01qiiq8kws76/questions
For more information about Kid Kare Project: http://www.kidkareproject.com/
3. Child Help
Founded in 1959 by Sara O'Meara and Yvonne Fedderson in response to the child poverty they witnessed while travelling overseas, Child Help has become one of the foremost child advocacy charities in the United States. They perform advocacy and awareness activities related to the issue of child abuse, training programs for those who work with children, as well as intensive residential treatment for abused children at Child Help Villages throughout the United States.
To donate: https://www.childhelp.org/donate/#step-one
For more information about Child Help: www.childhelp.org
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