For Southwood Middle School student Kaitlyn Hall and Wabash High School students Nicole and Rachel Adams, having a talk about healthy relationships with their parents paid off with a gift basket of prizes from local …
The Talk: TADA Students Encourage Parents to Talk to their Children
As part of Teen Dating Violence Awareness month in February, the TADA Group (Teens Against Dating Abuse) at Southwood and Wabash schools encouraged parents to talk to their teens about healthy and unhealthy relationships. This was part of a statewide campaign and a website the Indiana Coalition Against Domestic Violence’s Stand4Respect.com
According to information from ICADV, two out of three teens will experience teen dating abuse. Unfortunately, 75% of parents don’t talk with their kids about relationships. Yet, by having the conversations parents have the power to set their children up to have safer and healthier relationships across their lifespans.
At ICADV their youth council made up of students from all over the state did focus groups with parents and found parents many times are unsure of how to have the conversation. So, ICADV put together talking points and talking times on the Stand4Respect website
Locally, to encourage Wabash County parents to have a conversation, TADA put together gift baskets in part from money received form the Chili for Charity donation, along with generous donations from local businesses that included: $10 donated from family video, toothbrushes toothpaste etc. from Dr. Mattern Dental, a bag and perfume from Goody’s and $5 worth of items from Dollar Tree.
Even though February has come and gone, if you as a parent or guardian of a teen or tween have not had a conversation about relationships, please do so now. For tips and information about what to say visit either www.famservices.com or Stand4Respect.org or call Hands of Hope, a division of Family Service Society, Inc.’s 24-hour hotline at 563-4407. Hands of Hope is a United Fund Agency.
