Ferris Wheel lights go blue for child abuse awareness

The Noon Exchange Club of Fort Smith, in conjunction with the upcoming movement “Step Up, Speak Out! A Rally to End Child Abuse,” will host a joint press event at 5 p.m., April 2, at the Park at West End in downtown Fort Smith.

This event will launch the seasonal opening of the park and will center on the Noon Exchange Club lighting the 56-foot Ferris wheel with blue colored bulbs to commemorate April as the National Child Abuse Prevention Month. Blue is the nationally recognized color associated with child abuse prevention.

Fort Smith Mayor Sandy Sanders will attend and give a Mayoral Proclamation for the Month of April. Also, Sam Sicard, president of First National Bank of Fort Smith and co-chairperson of “Step Up, Speak Out!” the newly formed local child abuse prevention initiative, will announce plans for a April 28 rally at the University of Arkansas at Fort Smith.

Buddy Acoach, Fort Smith Noon Exchange Club president, will also be present and available for questions.

The National Noon Exchange Club has been an advocate for the prevention of child abuse for many years and the Fort Smith club has taken a local lead in the same effort.

“Step Up, Speak Out!” is a new initiative that exists for the purposes of promoting awareness on the topics of child abuse, specifically child sexual abuse, and engaging the community in different areas of prevention:
• Prevention through awareness;
• Prevention through education; and,
• Prevention through warning predators that our community is fighting back.