Countywide : Show to Be Part of Child Abuse Prevention Month

When the Stop Gap Players perform at the Harlequin Dinner-Theatre later this month, the show will be far from typical.

But the scenes may be familiar to some of the guests attending the program.

As part of statewide Child Abuse Prevention Month, the players will perform a series of vignettes on child abuse. The April 22 dinner program is one of several activities planned for the month.

Sheila Dobbs, a member of the Orange County Child Abuse Council, said the programs are for everyone--even for those not affected by child abuse.

“We don’t have to have our child killed by a car to know that it’s bad,” Dobbs said. “We have the ability to work for a lessening of pain without having to experience the pain ourselves.”

Residents can reserve a dinner program ticket by sending $25 to the Child Abuse Council, 22912 Belquest Drive, El Toro, Calif. 92630 or by calling 581-1181.

Other activities planned for the month include: a meeting of the Child Abuse Council at the Orange County Department of Education, 200 Kalmus St. in Costa Mesa, from 9 to 10:30 a.m. April 18. Public participation is encouraged; a daylong seminar April 23 on child abuse prevention at the Registry Hotel in Irvine for $55 with a reservation or $75 at the door; on April 25, a free lecture at the Santa Ana Main Library at 7 p.m., and on April 26, a daylong workshop at the Ourselves Counseling Center in Santa Ana.