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Awake Children’s Advocacy outlines services as county caseloads rise
Summary
Crystal Jones of Awake Children’s Advocacy described services offered at the new Swain County center — forensic interviews, medical exams, free therapy and court advocacy — and cited statewide cost‑benefit research and local increases in child‑abuse cases, saying 71 Swain children have been served so far in 2026.
Crystal Jones, executive director of the nonprofit Awake Children’s Advocacy Center, told the Swain County Board of Commissioners on March 3 that the center provides forensic interviews, medical evaluations, free therapy, court accompaniment and advocacy aimed at minimizing trauma for children who have experienced abuse.
Jones said a recent North Carolina cost‑benefit study shows large lifetime costs avoided when children receive coordinated services, and she gave several figures from research summarized for commissioners: short‑term health‑care costs cited at roughly $45,000 per child, long‑term health costs at $18,000, victim cost per crime at $229,000, juvenile incarceration at about $14,954 and a total societal cost per victim framed in the presentation as in the millions over a lifetime. Jones emphasized she shared the numbers to explain community benefit, not to reduce a child to statistics.
Jones said Awake applied for and secured grants and paid for equipment and furnishings for the Swain County center; she said Awake occupies about one‑third of the building and funded forensic‑interview gear and medical equipment used by law‑enforcement and social‑services partners. She described the center’s role in coordinating with law enforcement and the Department of Social Services (DSS) so children can receive services locally instead of traveling to other counties.
Speaking about local caseloads, Jones said Swain County has experienced sustained growth in reported child‑abuse cases: a reported 24% increase from 2021–22, and a cited 68% increase between 2024–25 and 2026, with 71 children served so far in 2026. She listed approximate annual increases in categories she tracks: sexual‑abuse referrals (about 27 more children per year since 2021), physical abuse (about 36 more), neglect (19), injurious environment/drug‑endangerment combined (16) and witnesses to violence (51). Jones described those figures as counts of individual children who received multidisciplinary support.
Jones thanked county partners and individuals who helped bring Awake services into Swain County and offered to leave the research material with the board. The presentation drew no formal action during the work session; commissioners thanked Jones and proceeded to departmental reports.
