Indianapolis Recorder, Indianapolis, Marion County, 19 January 2001 — Page 9

FRIDAY, JANUARY 19, 2001 ■ PAGE A9

Kristin Roundtree North Central High School Ashley Hardy Northview Middle School Recorder Interns

Recently in the news, while a mother was lying in bed, a young child found his mother’s gun and accidentally shot himself. This is one example of child neglect. Today many parents are not being cautious about their children’s safety. Children can get into anything, including guns. Numerous neglect cases involve children who find a gun and accidentally shoot themselves. A 26-year-old, who wanted to remain anonymous said, “This happened to one , of my good friends. Her 2-year-old son was accidentally shot when he had found a gun. So really parents need to be more aware and careful and do not set things around like that.” Last year a little boy found a gun under his mother’s bed and shot himself in the head. His older brother found him lying on the floor. The little boy was dead. This tragedy left the family grief stricken. Jimikia Smith, a mother of two young children said, “This is a form of child neglect Some of these parents just don’t care. I will never have a gun around my children. I do not want the police to take my children away from me.” There are many ways parents can prevent these tragic situations from happening. Just be careful about where you put things and be more alert. Carol Rice, a mother of two said, “It is really difficult to run after your children and to see what they are getting into. If I check on one, I would have to check on the other. I would never have anything, especially a gun around my children. I try the best I can, and I make sure that wherever they are that they are safe. Whether .. it’s at home, grandma’s house, or wherever." Some parents are very careless. Some let their children run wild and just let them do whatever they want to do. Just about anything can happen if you are not careful. Leaving children unattended can be a form of neglect. This form of neglect mainly depends on the age of the children, where the children were left unattended and how long they were left unattended. “One time I left my 6-year-old in the car when I was going into the grocery store. I came back out and I was actually watching someone trying to break into my car. My daughter was crying. I ran back in the store and dialed 911, and then the police caught him. My daughter could have been killed. That would have been my fault too. I will never leave my daughter in the car again. I could have gotten arrested for neglect,” said a 25-year-old who wanted to remain anonymous. One of the most common excuses for child neglect is “I’ll only be gone a minute.” During that minute anything could happen. If anything did happen the parent would be legally responsible, not to mention the guilt that would come from knowing that the accident that occurred could have been prevented. So what can parents do to prevent unfortunate accidents like those mentioned in the article? First, parents should not underestimate their children. It is the natural instinct of a child to be curious. So if a child finds a gun, more than likely he or she will play with it. If a parent keeps a gun in the house, the gun should be unloaded and locked in a safe place, such as a locked cabinet. Parents should also educate their children about gun safety. For more information on child neglect call 800-800-5556.

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Hard Work Pays Off 2001 Prelude Award winners announced By Ta Shawna Williams This year several students from Broad Ripple High School entered, and three Broad Ripple High School became finalists in the Visual Arts part of the competition. The criteria for the Visual Recorder Intern Artscompetitionis:thatonemustconstructaportfoliothatreflectsoriginality,depth, and technical skills. I talked to a one of the finalists, Pastel Howard and she elaborated While sitting at home Pastel Howard heard the phone ring. On the other end on how she felt when she realized her portfolio had been favored by the judges echoed an uncontrollably excited voice. “Pastel did you receive a call from the Pastel then called herfriend and fellow artist, Ann Dougans, to share the news. Ann Children’s Museum,” asked her ecstatic teacher, Deborah Tyte. had also become a finalist so they began to celebrate together. These two individuals “No, not yet,” responded Pastel in a much calmer tone. have been working for a few years to prepare an aesthetic portfolio for this much Minutes later Pastel received a call from the Children’s Museum informing her that anticipated competition. Both girls entered the competition last year, where Howard she was a winner of the Prelude Awards. became a semifinalist “I am going to win the Prelude next year," she assured, while Annually the Children’s Museum sponsors the Prelude Awards. This is a working on a new composition last year competition that calls for talented youth throughout Marion County. The competi- Kate Blemaker, also a student at Broad Ripple, fared well. This was her first year tkxi offers youth a chance to show off their skills in visual arts, creative writing, dance, entering the competition. and video. 7heirworkswillbedisplayedattheChildren’sMuseumfromJan20throughMarch 30. Premarital Relationships By Robert Russell Shortridge Middle School Some of these young mothers still try to continue in school, or if they are old enough Recorder Intern they try to get a job to help support the child. Then kids at II, 12 13,and 14 years of age have to go through counseling and get Premarital birth is now becoming big in teens because the teens who want them medication because of their depression from trying to take care of their babies. The always think that babies are so easy to raise and how they can give the child a better babies wake up the young mothers in the middle of the night and they have to stay Hie than what they had because these teens were neglected and mistreated or abused, up for two hours caring for the child. And then in a couple of hours they have to go They’re thinking I know that I’m ready to have a baby, then I’m going to have a baby, to work or school. Yet some kids think that they can support their babies through But none of them are when they get pregnant and have a baby and then have to take child support and other programs that are available. care of it but they don’t know anything about them. Then these teens have to quit Jason Ziko, 14, a Shortridge Middle School student, said, T think people should try going to school and take care of the baby all day. to practice safe sex and try to be sure ofwhat they want. And ifit is so, then do it but Some girls have babies and their mothers end up having to take care of the child, they must be able to take care of the baby.”