July 2017 | 21
E
very year more than 3.6 million
referrals are made to child
protection agencies involving
over 6.6 million children. This
statistic is staggering. One incredible
organization located in Pensacola,
Florida is doing everything in their
power to lower this number to zero.
Every child deserves a home filled
with love, comfort, support and safety
and Gulf Coast Kid’s House strives to
provide every child with this. Gulf Coast
Kid’s House is a children’s advocacy
center serving Escambia County. They
are unique in that they provide all of
the professionals and resources needed
for the intervention, investigation and
prosecution of child abuse cases under
one child-friendly facility.
Executive Director, Stacey Kostevicki
is passionate about their mission
saying, “Our goal is to form a more
collaborative response to child abuse
cases so that we can improve case
outcomes and minimize
trauma to the children and
families we serve.” Working
for this incredible cause is
life changing. Stacey began
her journey with Gulf Coast
Kid’s House back in 2006
assisting with marketing and
has been an integral part
of the organization ever
since. They work towards
addressing many of the
underlying issues as well by
providing child victims and
their families with mental
health counseling at the
center. The mission of Gulf
Coast Kid’s House is also a mission of
the community. They were created out
of a community effort to handle child
abuse cases more effectively.
Today they are still heavily supported
by the community and in turn, support
the local community through child
abuse prevention efforts provided
free to children and adults. Helping
these deserving children takes a
village and GCKH relies heavily on
community support. There are many
ways to contribute, from monetary
donations or providing new and
gently used clothing items for their
children’s closet, to volunteering
throughout the year to help with their
prevention programs and fundraising
events. Stacey Kostevicki works at the
heart of the organization, “The most
rewarding part of this job is supporting
everyone working within Gulf Coast
Kid’s House,” she described. “They
really have the hard jobs – I like to call
myself a cheerleader and advocate for
the people that do the hard work.” For
additional information visit
www.GulfCoastKidsHouse.org or call
(850) 595-5783.
story by
Courtney Murray
|
photos provided by
Gulf Coast Kid’s House
Gulf Coast
Kid’s House
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