VIRTUS / Protecting God's Future

Ms. Joan Vienna
Office of Safeguard the Children, Archdiocese of Los Angeles; Safeguard the Children Coordinator
[email protected]
213-637-7227

Heather T. Banis, Ph.D.
Victims Assistance Coordinator, Archdiocese of Los Angeles
[email protected]
213-637-7650 

DID YOU KNOW? Weekly messages from Safeguard the Children

Promise to Protect Pledge to Heal (Bishop's Charter to the People of God)

Reporting a Suspected Child Abuse Incident Form

Fingerprinting

Virtus Certification Classes

Keeping the Promise Alive provides ongoing awareness for the prevention of child sexual abuse. The material covered in Keeping the Promise Alive is designed to identify and reinforce the lessons of the original Protecting God’s Children® for Adults program by clarifying some of the more challenging aspects of the sessions and strengthening the participants’ ability to recognize risky behavior in their environments and take action to intervene in potentially threatening situations.

Information & SIGN UP with Kirstie E: [email protected] T: 626-644-0099

Safeguard the Children is our parish program, under the direction of our Safeguard the Children Committee, that focuses on keeping our children safe at all times. 

The ministry consists of parish staff, parishioners, school staff and clergy all dedicated to promoting and ensuring the protection of all children and youth. By working closely with the Archdiocese of Los Angeles the committee ensures that all adults who have regular contact with children and youth are vetted and approved for their roles and trained in maintaining a safe environment within our parish. 

The Archdiocese of Los Angeles and The Catholic Community of St. Bede the Venerable are committed to the initiatives outlined in the U.S. Bishop's Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People in regard to the reporting and investigation of sexual abuse allegations involving minors.

If you have been sexually abused as a minor by a member of the clergy or anyone representing the Catholic Church, or if you know of someone who was, you can report that abuse through the Archdiocesan Victims Assistance Ministry Office at 213-637-7650 or the toll-free number 800-355-2545.

In line with the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People issued by the United States Catholic Conference of Bishops, all parish employees and adult volunteers having regular, ongoing interaction with minors are required to: 

• attend a VIRTUS© seminar (“Protecting God’s Children”) 
• be fingerprinted within the Archdiocese of Los Angeles agency
• and have a background check. 

The USCCB Charter also directs all dioceses and parishes to implement safe environment programs known as Teaching Touching Safety (or "Good Touch, Bad Touch" for younger children) to be presented to all children and youth enrolled in a parish religious education program or school.

For more information about the Archdiocese of Los Angeles' Protecting Our Children Program please visit this link. This page provides access to many articles and materials and contacts, please explore the site, the available materials and contact any of the appropriate individuals for more information or as needed.

The Los Angeles Archdiocese has produced an informative brochure entitled “Working Together” that provides resources on how to prevent abuse and provides information on reporting child abuse.

Further information about these efforts is made available to families at the beginning of each year. 

All adults working or interacting with minors must be VIRTUS certified. Once you have attended the 3-hour certification class, you can then keep up on your certification by reading and responding to the monthly bulletins, or by attending a Re-Certification class every 4 years. 

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