Newsletter: Spring 2026 Update

Dear Friends,

We are excited to bring you our Spring 2026 update! Below we shine a spotlight on our latest efforts to ensure that our children and families receive the support they deserve to heal from and prevent child sexual abuse.  

We are empowering more young people than ever before by providing them with the essential tools to identify, prevent, and report abuse. This year, we have expanded our Safe Touches prevention education into kindergarten classrooms and reinforced our Healthy Relationships programming for teens.

We continue to walk alongside youth survivors and their families, providing the responsive, compassionate support they need on their journey from crisis to healing to empowerment.

One of our proudest milestones has been expanding access to Spanish-speaking families through the addition of our Bilingual Community Educator, Veronica Sena. See below to learn more.

This summer, the Kerengende Foundation is pleased to collaborate with youth-serving organizations to provide educational programs for children and teens in grades K–12, as well as the adults who support them.

We will offer:

• Safe Touches Workshops
• Healthy Relationships curriculum
• Darkness to Light adult training

These programs can take place at your location or at our office in Belleville. To schedule a workshop, make a referral, or learn more, please contact Hannah Rosenthal, Youth and Family Clinical Coordinator, at hannah@kerengendefoundation.org or (314) 325-4270.

Your support makes our work possible. Thanks to each and every one of you for helping us prevent abuse, facilitate healing, and build stronger, safer communities.

With gratitude,
Amber Clayborne | Founder & Executive Director 
(618) 767- 4526 

---

Kerengende In Action – Program Updates

Safe Touches 

Our Safe Touches programming continues to grow! This school year we have expanded into Belle Valley Elementary School, and we couldn’t be more thrilled to offer this critical program right here in our hometown. We are also now reaching students as early as kindergarten in Avant and Annette Officer elementary schools, ensuring we start prevention as young as possible.

In Cahokia Heights, every current second-, third-, and fourth-grade student has now received Safe Touches education—making a significant impact on protecting our community. 

Watch Our Safe Touches Program In Action:

---

Healthy Relationships

Thanks to our ongoing partnerships with the Cahokia Unit School District #187, Chestnut Health Systems, and Project Compassion NFP, our Healthy Relationships program is stronger than ever. This Spring, the Kerengende Foundation successfully delivered Healthy Relationships workshops to almost 300 middle and high school students across five Illinois communities: Cahokia, Madison, Venice, Sauget, and O’Fallon. 

A key focus has been the importance of communication, including  verbal, non-verbal, written, and visual communication. Our middle and high school students are acquiring vital life skills, such as  active listening, leading with empathy, and discerning when face-to-face communication is most effective.

---

Adult Education

We hosted our second dad’s group at Vivian Adams Early Childhood Center in East St. Louis focused on child sexual abuse prevention, highlighting the importance of building community, learning, and shared responsibility with fathers. 

We are now offering services in Spanish! 

We are delighted to introduce Veronica Sena, our new Bilingual Community Educator! Veronica is a military veteran and bilingual educator with over two decades of experience in advanced military and civilian medical education and care. Her proven ability to engage diverse learners and her expertise in multicultural environments and, accommodating various learning styles, will be invaluable in delivering responsive instruction and supporting our Spanish-speaking community.

Thanks to Veronica’s efforts, we’ve significantly expanded our reach to the Spanish-speaking community. Key achievements include:

• Real-time workshop translation for students.
• Translation of materials to ensure full access to our services for families.
• Building a consistent presence and relationships through the Latino Roundtable of Southwestern Illinois.
• Staffing tables in Spanish at community events.
• Serving our first Spanish-speaking family with therapy and support group services.

We are excited to continue expanding this vital community access.

Direct Support Updates

We’re thrilled that Haley Simpson is leading our Non-Offending Caregiver Support Groups this year. These groups remain a cornerstone of our work, as we provide a safe and compassionate space for participants to process, connect, and heal. 

We continue to receive referrals for therapy and case management, ensuring youth survivors and their families are connected to the support they need—whether through Kerengende or trusted partner organizations. These services will remain available throughout the summer and beyond.

To learn more, schedule a workshop, or make a referral, please contact Hannah Rosenthal, Youth and Family Clinical Coordinator using our contact form.

In the Community

For the first time ever, we brought our Safe Touches Workshops to a community event– Belleville Kids’ Day 2026! Equipped with our beloved Safe Touches puppets, we offered three workshops throughout the day where kids and their families learned about prevention in a fun and engaging way. The response was overwhelmingly positive, and we look forward to expanding these community-based opportunities in the future.

---

Behind the Mission

---