Meet Peter Singer and David Pittman, two advocates who are serving the needs of child victims of maltreatment and survivors of sexual abuse. The Child-Friendly Faith Project is honored to have each give an important presentation at this year’s conference on Dec. 4th and 5th in Austin, Texas.
Peter will talk about how to engage faith communities in providing needed services to children and families impacted by maltreatment. David will explain how faith communities can help provide mental health services to survivors of child sexual abuse.
Through their nonprofit organizations, both men have found ways to guide faith communities so they can improve the lives of those who have been harmed by child abuse and neglect.
Peter Singer
Founder of Care in Action
Peter Singer, MSW, LICSW, is the director of Care in Action Minnesota, a nonprofit organization that helps faith communities reach out to children and families impacted by child maltreatment. As a boy, Peter was greatly affected by a terrible tragedy suffered by a childhood friend and his family. The realization that it might have been prevented had his church community and child protection services worked together led him to seek solutions in the field of child protection. Peter also serves as a Clinical Supervisor with the counseling network Family Innovations, where his counseling practice focuses on children who have been impacted by traumatic events.
Talk Topic: “Bridging the Gap between Faith Communities and Child Protective Services”
The faith community and child protection services often find it difficult to partner in meaningful ways to help children and families impacted by child maltreatment. Peter Singer has worked with these two groups in Minnesota since 2005 to develop techniques to bridge this gap. In this presentation, he discusses strategies that he employs to help the faith and child protection communities work together to help children and families struggling with issues of abuse and neglect.
David Pittman
Founder of Together We Heal
David Pittman is the executive director of Together We Heal, a nonprofit organization whose purpose is to provide cost-free counseling and guidance for those who suffer from the trauma of childhood sexual abuse. TWH pairs survivors with mental health services by working with therapists in private practice, religious organizations, and governmental agencies. Through its efforts, survivors overcome trauma so that they can heal and thrive. David raises awareness of this issue through public speaking and collaborating with other advocacy groups, exposing sexual predators and their methods. He is also the South Florida Area Support Group Leader for Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests and a member of the American Academy of Experts in Traumatic Stress.
Talk Topic: “Working with Faith Communities and Governmental Agencies to Support Survivors of Child Sexual Abuse”
Therapy is an essential part of the healing process for those who have suffered the trauma of childhood sexual abuse. Yet many survivors don’t know where to turn to find those services. David Pittman—a survivor himself—founded Together We Heal for that very purpose. Its mission is to pair survivors with mental health services through partnerships with therapists in private practice, religious organizations, and governmental agencies. David explains how such a model of collaboration has helped survivors overcome trauma and achieve recovery, healing, and hope.
To learn more about Child-Friendly Faith Project Conference 2014, please go to this link. A complete schedule can be found here. A list of speakers’ bios is here.
