Child Advocacy Center will be the starting location for Lauren’s Kids: Walk in my Shoes on Tuesday, April 22

Press release from the Child Advocacy Center

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Lauren’s Kids: Walk in my Shoes is celebrating 10 years! Join the fight to prevent abuse and protect childhood. Join the Lauren’s Kids Foundation and thousands of walkers across the state for the 2025 Walk in My Shoes 1,500-mile trek across Florida.

April is National Sexual Assault Awareness Month and National Child Abuse Prevention Month — every step counts in the fight to prevent child sexual abuse and help survivors heal.

On Tuesday, April 22, join us for a 6-mile walk to advocate for child safety. There will be friendship bracelet making during walk registration, which will begin at the Child Advocacy Center (CAC) located at 500 E University Avenue, at 11:00 a.m. The walk will leave the CAC at noon. There will be a water stop at the 3-mile mark, sponsored by the Gainesville Woman’s Club. Walkers will be able to see the Children’s Medical Services building at the water stop, which is where the CAC’s Advocacy Team resides and partners with the Child Protection Team. At the water break, walkers can choose to stop or continue walking. An Uber code will be provided to walkers to cover the cost of a ride back to the starting location. The walk will end in the parking lot of the Performing Arts Center.

Click here for more information about the walk.

Laurens Kids: Walk in my Shoes has partnered with the CAC for multiple years and has been a great way to raise awareness locally on childhood sexual abuse. Since its inception in 1999, the CAC has made tremendous strides in creating a compassionate community where children and families are supported as they heal from trauma and violence. We strongly believe that every child deserves a safe and happy childhood.

As members of our community, we recognize the importance for all of us to work together to break the cycle of child abuse and improve outcomes for child victims and their families. We know the impact the CAC and its partner agencies have on our community and their ability to provide a child-friendly, trauma-responsive space where children can transition from victims and survivors to thrivers!

In 2024. the CAC served 3,964 children and caregivers. Of those, 63 were child sex trafficking cases, 754 were physical abuse cases, 908 were sexual abuse cases, and 239 required a specialized forensic interview — all right here in Alachua County. To date and over the past 25 years, more than 27,787 children have received services and are thriving today.