Decatur officials plant pinwheels remembering child abuse

Photo by Mike Eckels A group of Decatur city officials, business leaders and residents plant 439 pinwheels March 31 in front of the Decatur police station on Main St. in Decatur. The pinwheels were planted as a reminder of the 439 confirmed child abuse cases in Benton County.
Photo by Mike Eckels A group of Decatur city officials, business leaders and residents plant 439 pinwheels March 31 in front of the Decatur police station on Main St. in Decatur. The pinwheels were planted as a reminder of the 439 confirmed child abuse cases in Benton County.

DECATUR -- Eleven Decatur city officials, business leaders and residents joined police officials Terry Luker and Joe Savage in front of the Decatur police station and united with 18 other groups from around Benton County to participate in the Cherishing Children Pinwheel Placement ceremony.

The Children's Advocacy Center of Benton County sponsored the event, which began with a rally on the campus of Northwest Arkansas Community College in Bentonville March 31.

The goals of the rally at NWACC and the pinwheel placement ceremonies are to raise awareness of the 439 reported cases of child abuse and neglect in Benton County.

Luker and Savage, along with the assembled volunteers, began planting 439 pinwheels on the lawn in front of the Decatur police station. Decatur Mayor Bob Tharp, Carla Martinez with Grand Savings Bank and Jeanelle Cox from the city office were among the volunteers on hand to plant the pinwheels.

For more information or to explore volunteer opportunities, go to cacbentonco.com or 479-621-0385.

General News on 04/05/2017