October is National Bullying Prevention Month and the organization, PACER, through their National Bullying Prevention Center, has declared October 9 UNITY DAY. This post is dedicated to the efforts of PACER, who offers a chance for readers to put an end to bullying. Through education and awareness we can stop it in its tracks.
Story 1: Cruel classmates emotionally battered the young boy while ill-informed teachers looked on and did nothing. Busily stuffing pens and papers into his front breast shirt pocket, he packed up his books and burst out of the classroom to leave the noise behind.
The day had been long and he was tired of the daily struggle. Pushing his thick glasses up off the end of his nose, he sprang out of the school door while the students continued to taunt him. He didn’t have time to notice the street sign directly in front of him. As he flew out the door, his body crashed into the sign, and he fell to the ground with his pens and papers flying into mid-air. The children laughed, calling him names while he picked himself up, gathered his belongings, and started the long trek home.
Story 2: The little girl stood alone on the edge of the playground during school recess. No one would play with her. She was beautiful and well-dressed, kind and gentle, funny and charming. But she learned differently. And because she learned differently the teachers and administration could not figure out how to teach to her. They lacked the proper skills and, instead of doing what was right, they did what was easy.
She went from being tutoring to being “pulled out ” for subjects to being placed full-time in a separate classroom. She wasn’t learning the “traditional” way, and the children began to ostracize her. The little girl was sad. She hated school. Her parents were inconsolable.
These are true stories. They are sad and unnecessary. And they are part of the bullying problem that needs to stop – right now - in the United States and around the world.
October is National Bullying Prevention Month, and for the fifth year PACER, through their National Bullying Prevention Center, has launched a “Bullying Ends With Me” campaign. They offer ways to inspire others to combat bullying by signing petitions, holding live events, and getting schools involved by taking pledges, offering morning announcements and providing classroom with toolkits.
"Last year, two million people in nearly 200 countries used the National Bullying Prevention Center’s resources and web-based tools to plan events, activities, outreach, and educational initiatives. Bullying prevention tools and resources are available on three websites: PACER.org/Bullying for parents, teachers, and other adults;PACERTeensAgainstBullying.org for teens; andPACERKidsAgainstBullying.org for elementary school students. One of the most popular tools is “Unite Against Bullying: A Student Event Planning Guide” which PACER created with the support of Facebook." ~Paula Goldberg, Executive Director, PACER
PACER has also partnered with Green Giant to encourage parents to “Raise a Giant” to help children grow and thrive. Together, they seek to educate parents how to prevent, stop and cope with bullying by signing in to their “Raise a Giant” campaign. They believe that writing a letter to your child about showing courage in the face of bullying is important.
We want our children to grow strong both inside and out.
PACER provides other important campaigns to help spread awareness on how to stop bullying. Check their website to learn about the many ways you can become involved.
PACER has deemed this October 9 “Unity Day”, and people around the country will join the movement by wearing orange to say, “Make It Orange and Make It End!”
In 2011, Ellen DeGeneres took the anti-bullying message to her television show, reminding viewers of the importance of ending bullying. This year, students across the country are becoming involved in continuing to spread the word about UNITY DAY.
You can become involved by “attending” and “sharing” the cause at the UNITY DAY FACEBOOK EVENT.
If you or your children have ever been bullied, or if you know anyone that has (or even if you don’t but want to end bullying) please get involved in this important cause.
For the sake of our children and our grandchildren, let’s do all we can to stop bullying now!
"P.S. One more thing… Be sure to watch ABC Family television this month for a very special announcement about National Bullying Prevention Month from Keegan Allen of the hit show “Pretty Little Liars.” Disney is a great supporter of bullying prevention and we can’t thank them enough." ~Paula Goldberg
Older posts you might enjoy:
I'm so so glad this is being brought out into the spotlight. Too many children's lives have been ruined by bullying, and it needs to be addressed in a very widespread way!
Bullying can leave lifelong emotional scars as well as deprive children of a normal and happy childhood. For years this terrible issue was ignored. Thank goodness for campaigns such as PACERS and Green Giant that are bringing it to the forefront. You have done a service by informing your readers of ways to get involved. Thank you so much, Cathy.
Those stories are heartbreaking. I think bullying is one of the tragedies of our time -- worse now than ever because of the internet -- and programs like this are vital. Thanks for spreading the word.
Thanks for bringing this to my attention.
[…] October Is National Bullying Prevention Month: PACER And Green Giant Partner To End Bullying […]
Those stories break my heart. Bullying is such a big issue. We need to do more to make sure our kids grow up confident and strong. I'll be sharing your post, Cathy.
You DO look very stylish and beautiful. And you have great taste.
Hi Cathy,
As one of your sales associates at Chico's, I thank you for your endorsement! It is always a pleasure shopping with you!
My Best,
Anne Bushell
Love love love! Love the way you dress -- you always look so put together! And love Chico's, one of my very favorite places to buy clothes as well. I hope Chico's notices this post and thanks you for your years of patronage!
It must be wonderful to have a store that meets so many of your fashion needs. Midlife is a tricky time where we're not as skinny or as "pert" as we used to be, but we can still rock a great outfit - and you did that wonderfully in so many of those photos!
Cathy, I love this so much! You look beautiful in each picture and tell your story in such a human, poignant way. Better watch out or Chico's will be making you a spokeswoman. I also love their clothes, especially slacks. They know their market, mature women who want to look chic. You hit the mark, my dear.
I worked for Chico's for about 5 years, but left about 8 years ago when I became a mom for the third time. I still have pieces from when I worked there that have held up this entire time. I loved helping customers there. It was so much fun to help women feel beautiful.
This is great. Your smile and eyes show how beautiful you feel.
I have recently discovered Chico's, and I LOVE the clothes and accessories! LOVE! And you always look stylish.
You look fabulous in all your Chico's clothes. Love the black dress.
Cathy, I agree with everything you wrote about Chico's. We loved having them as brand sponsors at BAM16 last April. They are my go-to store for most fashion styles. Their pants, capris and shorts always fit perfectly! Your fashion pics look wonderful. I hope they read this post!
Your outfits from Chico's are beautiful! Your sense of style is inspiring- It's enhanced by your inner beauty my dear friend. xo
Your eyes, clothes and smile show that you are comfortable and happy! Love seeing it!
What a beautiful piece, Cathy. I love that the clothing has helped you feel more like you again. And I'm so happy to see how happy you look in these pictures!!
I, too, feel Chicos enables me to be attractive. I am on a walker and sometimes use a wheelchair. I have people telling me how great I look and I know it is because of the Chico clothing. Sometimes I wish it would show some wear as I find it last forever and I sometimes feel guilty for buying something new. But I am simply addicted to their styles.
I love this, Cathy! Chicos is a wonderful company for so many reasons. Not the least of which is their clothes are fabulous confidence boosters and you look gorgeous in them!
What a refreshing piece! And (best Billy Crystal impersonation here) "Darling, you look marvelous!" Take care. Stephanie (Better After 50 Board)
You always look lovely and put together, my little Yankee! boy we had fun Miami.
Chicos is the only store I go to for my outfits. My mobility is very limited so it's nice that the ladies will bring things to me that fit what I'm needing. My problem is that I love every outfit I see. It's dangerous to my pocketbook. That's not going to stop me.
Recently our local Chico's store closed, it was a sad day for many shoppers. I agree with your feelings on their clothing line as I love all my pieces and get so many compliments when wearing them. I've been going through a lot as well. I haven't discussed it publically but I've developed seizures which has put my life on hold while they work to discover the cause. Meanwhile I can't drive, work, or live life as I knew it.
Great post! Thanks so much for thinking about our community and how something seemingly so simple could make such a difference - both functionally and for our self-esteem - which can really take a hit thanks to the MonSter.