CANADA
The B.C. Catholic
By Agnieszka Krawczynski
The B.C. Catholic
SURREY
The Archdiocese of Vancouver is working with a Texas-based group to train parents, children, and ministry leaders in ways to root out abuse.
“Our policy has a goal of creating safe parish environments, and you can create safe parish environments in many ways,” said Sharon Goh, the coordinator of the ministry called “Protecting God’s Children” (PGC).
PGC issued a new policy in December 2009 requiring every parish to screen every volunteer or employee who might work near children. Now the archdiocese is taking prevention to the next level by working with Praesidium, an organization in Arlington, Tex., that specializes in abuse-risk management.
“We’re trying to make everything as transparent as possible through screening and proper recruitment,” said Goh. “Next is education. Education is important because we’re hoping to get everyone in the community on the same page.”
So far, 17 parishes have opted to use Praesidium’s resources, which come at a cost of $200 a year and include instructional videos, informatiooon on the latest research on abuse, and interactive online training.
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