NIAGARA FALLS N.Y. (WKBW) — A community in Niagara Falls came together on a mission to remember victims and survivors of child abuse. Members of the Stop Abuse Campaign held a pinwheel garden planting that also doubled as a memorial to a young boy tragically killed by his mother's boyfriend.
Child abuse resources:
- Child Care Resource Network
- Phone number: 1-800-342-3720
- Child Protective Services
- Phone number: 1-800-342-3720
- Child and Family Services
- 24-Hour Domestic Violence Hotline Response for Erie County phone number: (716) 884-6000
- Family Help Center
- Phone Number: (716) 822-5098
"The pain never goes away," great grandmother, Carolyn Spring, to child abuse victim Eain Brooks said.
Ten years ago a parents worst nightmare happened to Brooks while his mom was out of the house. Brooks was left with his moms boyfriend.
"She got a phone call from him saying he wasn't moving and he didn't know what to do," Spring said.
Brooks suffered a head injury, Spring shared, that would change their lives forever and child abuse is to blame.
"He was thrown into the bath tube and hit his head," she stated.
Anger is a word she said that consumed her. After days of Brooks being in the hospital surrounded by family and brain surgery, Spring said he was gone.
"He never came out of the coma," she said.
This family is still on the road to healing and that's exactly why they planted a pinwheel garden. They say they want to push for peace in each household and raise awareness for kids just like Brooks.
"This is everyone's problem and we all need to pay attention," the Executive Director of the Stop Abuse Campaign Melanie Blow stated.
She said just shy of 2,000 children in Erie County die from child abuse each year. The pinwheels planted blow in the wind, she shared, for the unfair circumstances some kids have or may have to endure.
"It's really hard for a child to say hey someone is hitting me," Blow said.
Spring said a piece of her heart will always hurt for Brooks, but he will never be forgotten. She won't stop fighting for those in need.
"Fly high baby fly high," Spring said with tears in her eyes.
