Monongalia County Child Advocacy Center hosts ‘Raise Your Shields’ child safety event | #childsafety | #kids | #chldern | #parents | #schoolsafey

MORGANTOWN, W.Va (WDTV) – The Monongalia County Child Advocacy Center (MCCAC) held a free child safety event in Morgantown.

The ‘Raise Your Shields’ event taught children and their families how to protect themselves from unsafe and abusive situations.

The event was highlighted by author Diane Tarantini’s reading of her book, “The Brave Knight.” The book uses a fantasy story as a metaphor to teach children how to recognize abuse and how to guard against it. One volunteer dressed up as a knight and helped Tarantini teach children how to stay safe.

Children also enjoyed crafts and activities during the event.

Tarantini is a child sexual abuse survivor herself, and was inspired to be the person that she never had when she was a child.

“The most important thing is to recognize, like, the signs. Someone might ask you to break rules. They might ask you to keep secrets. They might ask you to take physical risks. I want them to recognize what it looks like, sounds like, feels like,” Tarantini said.

“But then, the brave knight teaches the young girl how to use her voice, that her words are her superpower, and that she can use those with a safe adult to get help for any hard things that are happening in her life. I want kids to just insert themselves into the story. The girl doesn’t have a name so that any kid can say, ‘that’s me.’”

MCCAC serves to provide a safe space for children that have experienced abuse or other adverse childhood experiences. Children can visit the Advocacy Center and tell their stories. According to the Advocacy Center, they provided services and support to 968 individuals in 2025.