The Monique Burr Foundation for Children, Inc., a Jacksonville-based nonprofit organization created in 1997, was recently awarded with the 2013 Childhelp Corporate Award for their continued support of child abuse prevention and treatment through Speak Up Be Safe^TM (SUBS), a national bullying and child abuse prevention program. The program is currently approved in 50 counties across the state of Florida.

“We are honored to be recognized among our peers,” said Executive Director Lynn Layton. “Throughout the country, 3.2 million children are reported each year as being abused or neglected and our goal is to reach every child in the state of Florida by 2015. We encourage parents to partner with us to ensure that our children remain safe.”

Speak Up Be Safe addresses safety from all forms of child abuse, bullying, cyber bullying and Internet dangers, and provides training and resources for parents and school personnel. Additionally, the foundation provides community resources regarding bullying and abuse prevention including an informative website and speaking engagements. The program has reached thousands of first through fifth grade students thus far, and has trained more than 650 facilitators in the state. SUBS is unique in that it is comprehensive, research based and age appropriate in its delivery of information for students.

To learn more about bringing this program to your city or school, contact Lynn Layton at (904) 642-0210. More information about child abuse statistics and prevention education can be found at www.moniqueburrfoundation.org/SUBS.