Prince George's County, Maryland, USA

Prince George's County Department of Social Services Raises Awareness for Child Abuse & Neglect With 2nd Annual Awareness Walkathon

Image with bold white text reading 'News Release' centered on a background featuring a partially visible Maryland flag. The Prince George's County Department of Social Services logo is displayed in the upper right corner, with colorful illustrations of trees, people, a sun, and a cloud. A purple banner at the bottom contains white text that reads, "FIND NEWS RELEASES AND SERVICES AT: SOCIALSERVICES.MYPGC.US."

LANDOVER, MD – During Child Abuse Awareness Month, the Prince George’s County Department of Social Services (PGCDSS) Child Advocacy Center (CAC) hosted its 2nd Annual Child Abuse Awareness Walkathon on Saturday, April 26, 2025, in Landover, MD. Director Stephen Liggett-Creel welcomed the crowd of participants and community partners with remarks of reflection and gratitude for community support and a call-to-action to residents reminding the community that child abuse and neglect ends when we come together as a community to report it, stop it, and prevent it. Prince George’s County CAC Director Rubi Nelson, also spoke on the importance of the trauma-informed work performed by her staff to gather the needed investigation information from the involved child in a safe, child-friendly environment. The walkathon highlighted available resources in the County for persons impacted by child abuse and neglect.

The event featured over 10+ exhibitors from organizations and agencies across the State, offering critical information and resources to families about preventing child abuse and neglect. Participants took a 3K walk around the parking lot of the Centre Pointe Business Park on Brightseat Road, where the CAC and Administrative Services Division of the Department of Social Services are currently located, at 925 Brightseat Road and 805 Brightseat Road, respectively. 

“Our primary goal in our social services work is to ensure all families and individuals in the County feel safe and supported," said Stephen Liggett-Creel, Director of the Department of Social Services. “We are on a mission to drastically decrease the number of occurrences of child abuse and neglect, through community education about what it can look like, how to prevent it, and how to report it, if it happens.”

The 3rd Annual Child Abuse Awareness Walkathon is set to be hosted next April to again highlight Child Abuse Awareness Month in Prince George’s County. To report allegations of abuse or neglect, please call the Maryland Department of Human Services Child & Adult Welfare Hotline at 1-800-917-7383 or the Prince George’s County Neglect/Protect Hotline at 301-909-2450.

###  

Prince George’s County Department of Social Services  

The Prince George’s County Department of Social Services is in the business of providing opportunities for residents of the County to become independent, responsible and stable members of the community. We do this by providing intervention services that strengthen and protect families, children and adults through encouraging self-sufficiency and promoting personal responsibility.

Follow @PGCDSS: Facebook, Instagram, X (formerly Twitter), LinkedIn  

Follow @PrinceGeorgesMD: Facebook, Instagram, X (formerly Twitter), LinkedIn

Share this content: