ENOCH — Several dozen people attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new Iron County Children’s Justice Center facility, which officially opened in Enoch on Friday.

“Today we gather not just to cut a ribbon, but to open the doors of hope, healing and justice for the children and youth of Iron County,” said Jennifer Davis, chair of the Iron County Children’s Justice Center Friends Board, a nonprofit organization tasked with raising money and support for the justice center and its mission.

“To the children and families who will walk through these doors, we want you to know that this center is here for you,” Davis added. “It is a place where you can begin your journey toward healing, where your stories matter and where you will always be met with empathy and care.”

Davis said the new facility will allow the center to continue furthering its mission with the community’s steadfast support.

“As we cut this ribbon today, let it be a symbol of the strength of this community and the hope that we are bringing to those who need it most,” Davis concluded. “Let it be a reminder that when we come together, we can create spaces where justice, healing and love prevail.”

Iron County Commissioner Mike Bleak said that while the need for a new children’s justice center had been discussed for years, the goal started to gain traction a few years ago.

“We moved forward. We started talking about fundraising strategies, we started talking about property and put that ball into motion,” Bleak said, adding, “Shortly after that, the stars aligned, I guess, if you call it that. I don’t think it’s chance. I think it’s a little more than that.”

Bleak highlighted the teamwork that helped facilitate this project.

“The right team came together, with the staff in the county, with our Friends board, some really talented people got together and began to form the plan to build a new center,” Bleak added, noting that the new 6,000-square foot facility is significantly larger than the justice center’s previous home (at 545 S. 225 East in Cedar City), which was around 900 square feet.

“The old facility was great. It’s been magical. It’s been a huge benefit to our community,” Bleak said. “We’ve outgrown it, and this is going to be such a wonderful facility moving forward, but this facility wouldn’t be here without you or without the community at large.”

Bleak went on to thank all those in the community who have supported the children’s justice center over the years.

“This has come together because of people like you, people in the community, people who have supported the 5k (race) over the years, people who have supported the golf tournament over the years, folks that have supported Dancing with the Community Stars, those people that have donated their time, their resources, their efforts into making this facility come to be, we wouldn’t be here without you,” he said. “There’s way too many people to thank. Our multidisciplinary team has been amazing.”

Iron County Attorney Chad Dotson spoke next, saying, “We are excited for the future here, for this new building, and all that it means for the important work that’s going to take place within its walls.”

Dotson said as the county attorney, “I have the opportunity to supervise the CJC, to prosecute and to oversee investigations of physical and sexual abuse children that happen here in Iron County. For me, these are some of the most important cases that come across my desk.”

“The work being done here at the CJC is of the highest priority to any prosecutor in the state of Utah, or it should be,” he continued, noting that the center’s primary role is to act as an essential tool for investigating crimes committed against children, as well as to connect victims with support and resources.

Noting that a house is “just a building” until it’s occupied, Dotson said, “What makes the house a home, of course, is the family.”

The center’s staff and multidisciplinary team members comprise the family that makes the Iron County Children’s Justice Center a home, he added.

Dotson acknowledged the hard work and efforts nurses, therapists, school officials, law enforcement officers, family services investigators and victim advocates, along with prosecutors, in helping make sure perpetrators of child abuse are held accountable for their actions.

“That’s what makes justice for children in Iron County possible,” Dotson said. “In fact, in the last few years alone, the Iron County Attorney’s Office has sent child predators away for several hundred years combined, some of those possible life sentences.”

Dotson added: “No one person gets the credit for that. One of my favorite quotes is from Ronald Reagan. He said, ‘There’s no limit to what a person can accomplish if you don’t care who gets the credit.’”

Tracey Tabet, state program director for Utah’s Children’s Justice Centers, added words of acknowledgment and appreciation.

“This is an absolutely incredible building, but you are the ones that make it a safe place, a helping place, a healing place,” Tabet said, adding, “You are truly surrounded by one of the most engaged communities I have ever witnessed in my 30-plus years with the Attorney General’s office. What you have here is truly special, and I just always feel so honored to feel a part of it.”

State Sen. Evan Vickers (R-Cedar City) also spoke briefly, saying that he and colleague Rep. Rex Shipp (R-Cedar City) were there in attendance on behalf of the Utah Legislature.

“This is an exciting day,” Vickers said, adding, “You know, we do a lot of things behind the scenes and a lot of work in the Legislature. Most of it goes unnoticed … . But these are the kind of days that make us smile and let us know we’re doing a good thing.”

Vickers also spoke about the funding allocated toward the project.

“It just amazes me, the people that work in this space, how you can take a little bit of money and just leverage it,” he said. “I mean, you put $1 in and you end up with $10 back. It’s just incredible what you do.”

A major part of that, he noted, has been the substantial and generous community support.

“Everyone here has played a part,” Vickers said. “You know, you get people that are willing to donate their time and labor, people that are willing to donate money and time and effort.”

Lecia Carpenter, speaking on behalf of general contractor Alex Meisner Construction, said collectively, more than $200,000 in labor, materials and equipment were donated to the project.

The facility took 10 months to build, as the groundbreaking took place Oct. 17, 2023.

“While we hope no one ever has to use this building, we know that if they must, they will be greeted with open and helping arms,” Carpenter said.

U.S. Rep. Celeste Maloy also spoke briefly, saying, “I didn’t make any of this happen, so I’m not here to take credit for any of it. I’m just here to lend support.”

Maloy noted that the center is about “investing in kids, keeping kids safe and then helping them heal … it shows that we value kids.”

The program’s final speaker was Iron County Children’s Justice Center Director Wendy Jessen, who thanked everyone for their support.

“The CDC would not be able to help children in our community the way we do without an amazing team: our law enforcement and Child Protective Services investigators, our CJC nurses, our contracted therapists, our prosecutors and my CJC staff,” Jessen said. “I am so grateful for the time and care you put into not just doing your job, but providing children with hope and support.”

Added Jessen: “Thank you to our state CJC program director, Tracy Tabet and her amazing team, our state legislators, local elected officials, Alex Meisner Construction and the many, many contractors and donors, both of financial or of services, and the CJC Friends Board, who do our fundraising. We wouldn’t be here without all of you today.”

Following Jessen’s remarks, Enoch Police Chief Jackson Ames, who is also the local CJC Advisory Board chair, gathered the various officials and staff members to the front of the building for the official ribbon-cutting.

Following the ceremony, members of the public were invited to tour the interior of the building, have some light refreshments and paint rocks for the center’s “Hope and Healing” rock garden.

According to statistics provided on the event programs, Iron County Children’s Justice Center opened 234 new cases during 2023, with 144 female victims and 90 male victims. Almost half (46%) were teenagers between the ages of 13 and 18, while another 36% were between the ages of 7 and 12.

Last year’s figures included 145 sexual abuse cases, 62 cases of physical abuse, 20 cases of domestic/family violence, 36 cases involving drugs and nine involving child pornography. Cases may be categorized under more than one type.

As for the offender demographics, 197 of the 272, or 72.4%, were male. More than half of the perpetrators were related to the victims, with 34.5% being parents or stepparents, 10% being siblings and another 10% being another relative.  

The new Iron County Children’s Justice Center is located at 1622 E. 5250 North in Enoch. For more information, visit its page on Iron County’s website or call 435-867-4275.

Photo Gallery

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2024, all rights reserved.