Hoops Family Children’s Hospital Child Advocacy Center recognizes Child Abuse Prevention Month with pinwheel planting

The Hoops Family Children's Hospital Child Advocacy Center team joined their community partners to plant pinwheels in front of the hospital in recognition of Child Abuse Prevention Month.

The Marshall Health Network-Hoops Family Children’s Hospital Child Advocacy Center (CAC) joined community partners Wednesday in planting pinwheels in recognition of National Child Abuse Prevention Month, raising awareness about the impact of child abuse on West Virginia children.

Pinwheels, a national symbol of child abuse prevention, represent the hope, innocence and joy every child deserves. The blue pinwheels were planted along Hal Greer Boulevard in front of the children’s hospital. The hospital will also be lit with blue lights during April.

The CAC provides a safe, child-friendly facility where child protection, criminal justice and child treatment professionals work together to investigate abuse, hold offenders accountable and help children heal. In 2025, the CAC served 313 children from Cabell and Wayne counties who were victims of alleged sexual or physical child abuse or neglect. 

“Preventing child abuse is a shared responsibility,” said Angie Seay, CAC coordinator. “By planting these pinwheels, we are raising awareness and reinforcing our commitment as a community to support children and families so that every child has the opportunity to thrive.”

To further enhance services for community children, the CAC will be relocated to a new designated space on the campus of Cabell Huntington Hospital, providing greater privacy and a more focused environment for children and families.

The community is invited to view the new facility during an open house from 4 to 6 p.m. Wednesday, April 22. The space is located at the rear of the hospital, beneath the helipad.

Photos from the event can be found at jcesom.smugmug.com/Events/2026-Events/CAC-Pinwheel-planting.