Robert Delaney of The Michigan Catholic
Published April 27, 2007

Protecting God’s Children Mary Eckert, archdiocesan Safe Environments coordinator, says Protecting God’s Children workshops funded through the Catholic Services Appeal seek to deliver five messages to parents: • Know the warning signs — such as suspicious behavior by adults, or sudden changes in children’s attitudes toward a particular adult or adults in general. • Control access to children — so that unauthorized adults won’t be able to get to them at school or play. • Monitor all children’s programs — to observe how adults interact with the kids, and insist all interaction take place within sight of others. • Be aware — parents should talk to kids about what is going on in their lives, and teach them about their bodies and that they can say no. • Communicate concerns — if they suspect inappropriate behavior on the part of adults toward children.

Livonia — Janice Filiatraut is enthusiastic about the value of the Protecting God's Children training she went through at St. Michael Elementary School.

She says what she learned will help keep her children safe, not just in their parish or school activities, but in other situations as well.

"Our kids are just getting to the point they're on sports teams with people you're not necessarily familiar with. They're going on sleepovers and doing things that bring them into contact with a wider group of adults," Filiatraut says.

But her first reaction to the notice that — because she volunteers at the school, where three of her four children are students — she would have to devote a three-hour block of time to the training workshop, was one of annoyance.

After all, as an elementary school teacher herself before she became a stay-at-home mom, she figured she knew all about proper behavior around kids. "I just didn't feel it was something that pertained to us," she recalls.

But now, after having taken the training, she says she appreciates how it equips parents to be on the alert about the adults their children have contact with, to be alert to changes in their children's behavior that could be a signal of something wrong, and to talk to their children about appropriate and inappropriate touching.

"Some of it was just common sense, but even that was a good refresher. It did make you think," says Filiatraut.

Developed in response to the clergy sex abuse scandals that came to a head in 2002, the Protecting God's Children training program is one of the ways the Archdiocese of Detroit and many other U.S. dioceses are responding to the provisions of the "Dallas Charter," the U.S. bishops' program for dealing with the issue.

Although stories of priests who molested minors figured most prominently in the scandal, and received the most attention in news media reports, there were also instances of vowed religious and lay people who had taken advantage of children in parish or school situations.

Now, background checks are performed on all Church employees and volunteers who work with children. And they all must attend a Protecting God's Children training workshop. Others are welcome to take the training, if they wish.

Since fall 2003 more than 36,000 clergy, religious and lay people have attended the 623 workshops that have been held around the Archdiocese of Detroit, says Mary Eckert, archdiocesan Safe Environments coordinator.

About 90 percent of all those who are required to receive the training have done so to date, and an additional 36 workshops are already scheduled.

"All new employees or volunteers are required to attend within six months of their assignment, so this will be a continuing effort, because of turnover," Eckert says.

The workshops begin by setting forth the harsh reality of sexual abuse of underage children by adults in this country: By the time they are 18 years of age, 40 percent of boys and 80 percent of girls have experienced some kind of abuse, ranging from rape to fondling to indecent exposure, she says.

Many parents who volunteer to work with children in parish or school settings have reacted with anger when first told they must attend a PGC workshop, but then — after taking the training — said it would be good to require all parents to take it, Eckert says.

"That's a real measure for me that this has made a difference," she adds.

Eckert says the training has made many parents and Church employees alert to signs of "grooming behavior," the things a sexual predator often does to cultivate a relationship with a child before actually committing an abusive act. Examples would include giving gifts or spending too much time with a child.

She acknowledges something could look suspicious, but just be an innocent mistake; nevertheless, once a person has been warned about such behavior, any second incident would be cause for dismissal.

Filiatraut has shared what she learned in the PGC workshop with her husband, John. "I think the diocese has really reached out to parents with this program. It's good to see the Church being pro-active on something, rather than just reactive," he says.

"Janice and I are both teachers — I'm at Churchill High School in Livonia and she was at Hayes Elementary for seven years — so we already know some of this stuff, but if you work in a cubicle at Ford Motor Co. all day you might not have the tools to deal with it," John Filiatraut adds.

The Filiatrauts have four children: John, 10, Madeline, 8, Alexandra, 6, and Mark, 4.

Both parents praise the way St. Michael School reinforces what they teach their children at home. And John Filatraut says he likes the way the school's anti-bullying emphasis also helps keep their children safe.

Janice says she also thinks it is good that PGC training includes a unit on Internet safety. The Filiatrauts say they carefully monitor their children's computer usage, and do not allow them to have e-mail or MySpace accounts.

PGC training and other aspects of the Safe Environments program are among the ministries of the Archdiocese of Detroit that are funding through the annual Catholic Services Appeal.

For more information about Protecting God's Children workshops, call Mary Eckert at (313) 237-4815.