Once again, participants rated the conference highly. 50 percent of participants who returned evaluations agreed that the conference was relevant and useful for their personal and professional lives; 44 percent strongly agreed. 43 percent agreed the conference provided new tools and ideas to take back to their offices and communities; 53 percent strongly agreed.

The conference also gave us many opportunities to celebrate successes in the field of child abuse prevention. The anniversaries of the New York State Children and Family Trust Fund and the Family Life Development Center at Cornell University were commemorated at a reception following the first day of workshops.

Each year at the conference, Prevent Child Abuse New York announces the winners of the Excellence in Child Abuse Prevention Awards. The awards were created to honor organizations and individuals whose efforts towards preventing child abuse and neglect in New York State deserve special commendation. Cindy Lee, President of Prevent Child Abuse New York, and Richards Nells, Associate Commissioner of the Office of Children and Family Services, announced the award recipients at a special luncheon at the conference.

The corporate award went to Time Warner Cable of New York and New Jersey, who donates more than $10 million worth of airtime to not-for-profits and continually demonstrates responsible corporate citizenship through its commitment to supporting children and enhancing communities.

The Lee Gross Anthone Child Advocacy Center in Erie County received the program award. Erie County's was one of the first child advocacy centers in the state and has established practices and standards that other centers across the state and country have emulated.

The volunteer award went to Rob Davis, founder of Hedge Funds Care, a coalition of hedge funds industry professionals devoted to raising funds to prevent child abuse and provide treatment to those who have been victimized.

Prevent Child Abuse New York also announced the winners of the Partnerships in Prevention Awards, which recognize outstanding leadership in promoting collaborations and cooperative efforts to prevent child abuse and neglect. The awardees were:

• Dr. Kevin Karpowicz, a pediatrician from Schenectady, who was instrumental in starting the Healthy Schenectady Families program. Dr. Karpowicz also developed a comprehensive training curriculum for volunteers. He serves on the Healthy Families Home Visiting Council.
• The Skipper Initiative, a Dutchess County coalition founded and lead by George Lithco and Peggy Whalen. The Skipper Initiative was established to increase awareness of Shaken Baby Syndrome (SBS) and to educate parents, caregivers and the public about how shaking injuries can be prevented.

Congratulations to all the 2004 award winners and thanks to our conference presenters and participants! You have made our work all the more worthwhile.

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