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Community

Pinwheel "Blue Out" for Child Abuse Awareness

Sam Dunklau
A portion of the blue pinwheel garden set up in front of the Davenport Police Department.
Credit Sam Dunklau
Brooke Hendrickx, right, and another spokeswoman for The Child Abuse Council stand near their pinwheel garden at The Davenport Police Department on April 7.

250 blue pinwheels are spinning in the wind in front of the Davenport Police Department. This morning, Davenport police partnered with the Quad Cities Child Abuse Council to plant the "Pinwheels for Prevention" garden. 

Council spokeswoman Brooke Hendrickx says people need to pay more attention to child abuse, since most cases are not reported.

"The most important thing to be aware of is that it's 100 percent preventable.  So, if people are just out in the community being positive role models, and being positive connections for kids, child abuse and the trauma it creates can be prevented and can be healed."

In the US, Hendrickx says one in ten children are victims of child abuse, and the problem costs the Quad Cities about 250 thousand dollars every day. 

Several other pinwheel gardens will be planted in other communities during the rest of the month, which is Child Abuse Awareness Month.

Community
I am currently a senior at Augustana College, majoring in Multimedia Journalism and Mass Communication with a minor in Creative Writing. I serve as the General Manager for WAUG.fm, Augustana's online student radio station and have worked as an intern and DJ at Studstill Media Group. I report on local news for WVIK and am honored and excited to be a part of the news team. I hope to pursue a career in radio broadcasting and an eventual master's degree in English or Communications.