31 - Friday, January 3, 1986 ~ North Shore News

Breaking the child abuse cycle

FOR THOSE who don’t believe North Shore
parents are capable of child abuse, look no fur-
ther than the golf course, the cocktail party or the
boardroom.

The established lawyer
and the trim-figured suc-
cessful business woman. are

just as likely to be beating
their children as someone on
‘skid row, says Phillis Mit-

DOING. THEIR best ‘to break the cycle of F child abuse, a
“crime which occurs even on the North Shore, are volunteers
Phyllis Mittlestead, Fiona Bancroft and Evelyn Ruddy, left
to right. The three women go to schools and clubs in an ef-
fort to make children: of ail ages more aware of. different
types of abuse.

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tlestead.

A volunteer with the Ca-
nadian Red Cross Child
Abuse Prevention Program,
Mittlestead, along with

Fiona Bancroft and Evelyn
Ruddy, is trying to break the
cycle of child abuse.

TYPES OF ABUSE

She lectures to high
schcols and community
groups around the North
Shore about the types of
child abuse: physical, emo-
tional and sexual abuse as
well as neglect.

She discusses what they
are, why they occur, what
can be done aktout them and
where to go for help.

Despite her efforts, Mit-

tlestead says the North Shore :

is a tough market to crack.
She has only spoken at
two North Vancouver high
schools and none in West
Vancouver.
“West Van has the im-

" pression child abuse doesn’t

happen there,”’ Mittlestead
said. “Child abuse cuts
across all barriers.”*

The program, which is
endorsed by the provincial
Ministry of Human
Resources and the B.C.

Medical Association, targets .

its efforts at adolescents
because they are the next
generation of parents.

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' aS runaways,

“By doing this we hope to
break the cycle,’’ said Mit-
tlestead. ‘‘Inadequate or
abusive parenting is often
passed onto the next genera-
tion of parents.’’

One in three reported
cases of abuse involves vic-
tims between the ages of 10
and 18,

“The plight of abused ad-
olescents largely goes
unrecognized,”’ Mittlestead
said. ‘Teenage victims of
abuse come to our attention
truants, juve-
nile delinquents, alcoholics,
teen prostitutes or drug ad-
dicts.”

The results are hard to
measure, says Mittlestead.
Calls to the provincial child

abuse hotline have increased
from 605 in 1978 to 2,500 in
1984, ;

And while Mittlestead
isn’t sure if this increase is
the result of increased
awareness or actual increas-
ed abuse, she sees the need
for preventive: work in stu-
dent response forms which
often reveal histories of
abuse. .

Mittlestead has~ volun-
teered in the child abuse
prevention field for 15 years
in MHR, fostering the Open
Door child care program and
the Red Cross Child abuse
program.

Last year Mittlestead was
presented with the Canadian

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