Predators Survivor Hero

Our Predators Survivor Hero award goes out this month to Patricia Wenskunas. On April 4, 2002, Patricia was brutally attacked at her home. The man who beat her was a personal trainer from the fitness club that Patricia had joined.

During the past several months before this attack, Patricia had become friends with the personal trainer. When he came to her home on April 4, 2002 he offered a pill that would help Patricia with weight loss. Shortly after taking the pill, she woke up to the horror of her personal trainer beating her. He wrapped Patricia's head with plastic wrap and a towel making it near impossible for her to breath. He told Patricia that he was going to kill her and her son. Patricia, a single mom, was desperate to save herself and her son. She managed to escape the attacker by jumping 12 feet from a balcony.

July 2004, the personal trainer was convicted of Assault with A Deadly Weapon and Criminal Threat. Amazingly, he only served 5 months of jail time!

Patricia said she has learned a lot about herself and the court system throughout this process. She said that if she could pass along wisdom to others it would be to "trust your gut and never let others convince you to doubt what you know is the truth." She also states that people that are victimized need to accept help. Through counseling and the support of her friends, Patricia was able to work through the pain of this ordeal to find healing.

Since the conviction, Patricia has moved forward in her life to try and make a difference for others. She started www.crimesurvivors.com a non-profit organization for victims of crime. She also developed a CS Awareness Pin. Crime Survivors has their third annual walk/run scheduled in October. Predators contributors Dr. Eric Hickey and Denise Brown are among the special guests to appear.

Patricia recently told us that she "continues to help other survivors survive and that is the ultimate reward-knowing what I experienced was for a much higher purpose." Patricia is a true example of a Predators Survivor Hero.

Are you a Predators Survivor Hero? Do you know someone that was a victim of crime and has moved beyond his or her situation to make a difference for others? If so, we want to hear from you about this true survivor! Please send your suggestions to us via our Contact Us page.

One Mom's Mission
By Nara King

Jessica Lunsford's case was unfolding in the media. For three weeks after hearing about Jessica, my mind was focused on what could be done to prevent random child kidnappings. What could be done to save the lives of other children, teens, and women that have gone in vain? Finally, after many months of research, feverish work, sleepless nights, and diaper-bagged days spent with my one-year old son Evan, Invinc-A-Kid was launched. This Kid was born to empower, educate, locate, and protect the most vulnerable among us.

www.invincakid.com is an on-line Academy and store. In the Academy, we educate the visitor on the latest safety trends in our children's environments. We have many resources and tips on how to steer clear of predators.

In our store, we have an exclusive line of Child ID, Child electronic and GPS locators, safety gadgets for kids, parents, the elderly and disabled-all designed to keep the kids safe-and predators out. The technology is state-of-the-art and the majority of the products are not sold in retail outlets. For the newest safety devices that are not yet available in the market, we can take pre-orders to start shipping in the fall. It is unfortunate that we need this technology in our lives. As I see it, soon every child will have a child ID, cell phone, and a locator to help parents and caregivers to better safeguard the child.

The laws can only do so much to protect us from predators. We have to take back control and be proactive in "blanketing" our young with additional layers of defense. We need to become pro-active by petitioning our local and national governments to implement Jessica's Law: sign the petition here. This law will require a mandatory 25 to life sentence for child predators and lifetime anklet monitoring thereafter. We need to work together to keep our children safe! Let's put the predator where predator belongs: in jail. Not out on the streets and online stalking our children and loved ones.

Curbing Workplace Violence
By Jeff McKissack

The greatest advice I have given those in the business profession to curb workplace violence is to devote some work hours to offer training to their male and female staff. This is a way employers are able to offer assistance by keeping employees safe both on the job and at home. Of course, most employers respond with "Why should we take 'work' hours to address things that go on outside of our business?" To which I explain to them that this is no different than the school systems taking time out of "reading, writing, and arithmetic" to address drugs, abduction, and molestation to teach "other people's" children what should be taught at home.

These safety topics were not on most teacher's curricula or work agenda either, but the faculty at school understand if they don't address the basic "human" needs, the work needs will not be addressed either. If you want to have someone focused, whether at school or at work, basic needs of safety and security must be addressed first otherwise this constant distraction will be ever-present.

The possibilities of these issues following an adult to work are MUCH greater than those following a child to school (i.e. irate husband, jilted boyfriend, stalker, etc.). The biggest difference is that adults can much more easily access other adults in the workplace by simply walking into the office than a "stranger" can access a child by walking into a school campus these days.

There are no quick A-B-C/1-2-3 answers here. Can I give "tips?" Yes, but actual "training" and "education" are the better response. The keys are (1) be comprehensive and (2) be repetitive.

Instead of thinking of how many "productive work hours" you'll lose by offering this training, rather think of the good will you will instill in your employees when they see you making a conscious investment into their personal safety. That pays dividends you cannot calculate in dollars and cents.

For more information on curbing violence in the workplace, you can visit www.defensebydesign.com.

Recommended Reading:
The Gift of Fear
By Gavin de Becker

Gavin de Becker garnered widespread media attention with his bestselling book, THE GIFT OF FEAR, which revealed the practical lessons from his decades of studying violence for the purpose of protecting ourselves from the dangerous situations people typically face - street crime, domestic abuse, violence in the workplace. The book, which appeared on the New York Times bestseller list for four months and has been published in 13 languages, was featured multiple times on the Oprah Winfrey Show, ABC-TV's Prime Time Live, and Larry King Live, as well as the pages of Time and Newsweek, and was endorsed by every major women's magazine.

Support Predators.tv through your purchase of this book through Amazon.com. Buy it Now!

Do you have a question or comment about a particular type of crime? to the Predators Crime Prevention Specialist - Retired Officer Carl Duke!

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