WCCAC
IMAGE CREDIT: FACEBOOK / WCCAC
FAMILY FINDS HOPE AT WILCO CHILDREN'S ADVOCACY CENTER
Wilco Children's Advocacy Center Celebrates Building Expansion by Charlotte Kovalchuk
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oday, Abby is a high school senior who wants to become a criminal justice lawyer and advocate for sexual assault victims. Her sister Laney is in college planning to pursue a career in child psychology. Both believe they wouldn’t be who they are now without the Williamson County Children’s Advocacy Center (WCCAC). Ten years ago, they found themselves at the advocacy center after Abby was sexually assaulted by her friend’s dad while she and Laney were playing at the friend’s house across the street. The WCCAC serves as the first stop for victims, providing everything from forensic interviews to medical exams, family advocacy, mental health counseling, and community education. From the moment Abby and her family walked through the center’s doors, it felt like they were being welcomed into a safe haven. “The workers were so inviting and very friendly,” Abby says. “I felt very welcomed to share my story and my emotions.” As part of that welcome, and as is the case for every victim, both girls got to choose one of the handmade blankets donated by local crocheters and quil-
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ters at the conclusion of their initial visit. Laney still has her quilt on her bed. “I think even being able to keep something that comes from a place that could remind me of a poor time in my life – I don’t have that memory attached to that blanket.”
GUIDING LIGHT Through weekly counseling sessions at the center over the next two years, the sisters were given tools that helped them not only learn how to handle the challenge they were going through at the time, but any others they would face in life. “My kids might have been nervous before appointments but afterwards left with their heads high,” their mom Jennifer says. “They gave my girls a suit of armor and rebuilt them to believe in themselves.” Abby and Laney had the chance to write their stories down, read them out loud, then burn them in what they describe as a freeing ceremony. A newly empowered Abby was adamant about taking her case to trial and sharing her story in court, even though her family could have accepted a plea deal. Abby’s therapist and others from
The center's original location (left) and the new Georgetown location (right)
