SEYMOUR JOHNSON AIR FORCE BASE, N.C. -- Members of the 4th Fighter Wing joined Wayne County officials at the Child Abuse Prevention Proclamation Ceremony April 19, 2016, in downtown Goldsboro, North Carolina.
Colonel Andrew Bernard, 4th FW vice commander and key community members signed a city proclamation to recognize April as Child Abuse Prevention month.
During the ceremony, Bernard spoke about the importance of awareness in preventing child abuse and the need for the community to come together to provide a healthy environment for children to grow.
“We share an obligation to protect our children from those that would hurt them,” said Bernard. “The success of any community, or nation, depends on its ability to foster the health and well-being of the next generation.”
Children from Seymour Johnson Air Force Base’s Child Development Center sat on the steps of Goldsboro City Hall during the ceremony holding pinwheels; the national symbol for child abuse and neglect prevention.
Gene Aycock, Goldsboro city council member, read the proclamation aloud followed by closing remarks from Dr. David Tayloe, Goldsboro Pediatrics doctor and speaker on child advocacy.
“The cup is always half full, never half empty, and that is the best thing about Goldsboro and Wayne County,” said Tayloe. “We have an amazing collaborative spirit here…. It’s been rewarding for me to work here for all these years and I look forward to our continuing collaborative effort to make sure all our children grow up in a family environment that nurtures optimum child-development, and ensures no child suffers neglect or abuse.”