FOX 35 Care Force: Juliette Kong of Kids House of Seminole
FOX 35 honors Kids House CEO Juliette Kong with Care Force Award
Kids House CEO Juliette Kong was honored with a FOX 35 Care Force Award for her work with Kids House, an advocacy center dedicated to helping children who are victims of abuse.
SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. - FOX 35 Care Force is recognizing the amazing work of an organization and its leader for the work they are doing to help children who are survivors of abuse.
Kids House is a safe place for children and families of abuse and neglect to receive forensic medical exams, interviews and trauma therapy.
Local perspective:
Brandi West is a survivor. Seventeen years later, she walked the halls of Kids House of Seminole and saw her drawing framed and hanging on the wall.
"I drew a picture of a girl, and she was crying, and I used all words for sadness," West said. "I used all the words I was feeling when that was happening."
For years, West was abused by her own father.
"It started when I was about 12 and went on until I was about 17," she said.
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He was someone who was supposed to keep her safe, but she ended up speaking out to save herself.
"He got arrested," she said. "He confessed to everything."
Her father only served eight months behind bars, but it has taken more than 17 years for her to heal.
Something she said had only been possible with the help she started to receive from the Kids House of Seminole.
"She is a success story," Kids House of Seminole CEO Juliette Kong said.
Kong has been leading the children’s advocacy center for the past 25 years.
"One of the reasons that I love Kids House so much and why I’ve been there for 25 years is we have a lot of those kids just like Brandi that walk in broken and then when they leave Kids House they’re a different person because we provide that hope," Kong said.
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She explained that the Kids House consists of a team of people that are so committed and dedicated to these children.
"That fulfills my cup. I know that when kids walk out of here that they are different."
West said she learned many lessons with the help of her counselors and therapists; like if something doesn’t feel right, to speak up and tell someone you trust.
"You shouldn’t take the bad feelings and bottle them up inside," West said. "Kids House taught me that you don’t have to focus on the bad things. No. There are so many more good things to focus on and to live your life for."
Kong said Kids House is a place that one wants, but sadly, it is something the community needs because it means there are children suffering from all kinds of abuse and this is where they go to get the help they need to heal.
What you can do:
Donations to the Kids House of Seminole can be made at www.kidshouse.org.
The Source: This story was written based on interviews with Brandi West, an abuse survivor who received support from Kids House of Seminole, and Kids House of Seminole CEO Juliette Kong.
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