The Exchange Club Foundation of Springfield, Ohio sponsored in part the Clark County Child Advocacy Center’s public awareness seminar on ‘Gun Violence in Clark County and Its Effect on Our Youth,’ at the Hollenbeck-Bayley Conference Center, on April 17th, 2025. Skip Warner and Larry Sewell represented the Club and Foundation and staffed an informational table with Prevention of Child Abuse materials as well as club brochures. The Presenters were Judge Lancaster, CC Juvenile Court, who lamented the fact that youth appearing in her Court consistently state they have no ‘heroes’ (or role models), worthy of respect. They see only drugs, alcohol, or violence as a way to cope. Chilling, to say the least. Presenter Caleb Perkins of OIC is the Gun Violence Coordinator and shared statistics on gun violence in Clark County, its increasing frequency and the decreasing ages of those perpetrators. The final Presenter was Dion Green, Founder and CEO of Flourishing Under Distress Given Encouragement (FUDGE), a 501(c)3 non-profit that helps survivors through traumatic experiences with resources and support. Mr. Green has personal knowledge of such trauma, as he and his father were among those in the Dayton Oregon District in 2019. His father, Derrick Fudge was one of the victims with Dion desperately attempting to save his life. Out of this senseless tragedy, Mr. Green created FUDGE and today implores all of us to break the cycle of violence and despair in our youth by connecting with them and providing the role model/mentor interaction than all children, especially boys need. A call to action indeed!
