Jim Wells County Courthouse vigil raises child abuse prevention awareness

A candlelight vigil at the Jim Wells County Courthouse put child abuse prevention at the center of civic life in Alice, where Brush Country CASA joined the Jim Wells County Child Welfare Board, the Kleberg County Child Welfare Board and the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services for a moment of silence and public remembrance.

The April 21 gathering was part of Child Abuse Prevention Month and part of a familiar pattern in the county. Brush Country CASA has used courthouse vigils before, including a similar event at the same site on April 19, 2022, and candlelight vigils across Brooks, Jim Wells and Kleberg counties in 2023. This year’s vigil again framed prevention as a community obligation, not a private tragedy hidden from view.

The urgency is local and measurable. An Alice Echo News Journal index entry said 954 children in Brooks, Duval and Jim Wells counties were allegedly victims of child abuse in 2023. In Jim Wells County alone, earlier reporting on a 2022 vigil said there were 356 alleged victims in 2021, and the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services confirmed 189 of those cases. Those numbers are why the annual vigil is more than symbolic. It is a public reminder that child abuse and neglect are not abstract problems somewhere else.

Texas CASA says its mission is to support local CASA programs with training, community awareness, resources and public policy. The group says CASA volunteers advocate for children’s safety, well-being and connections through face-to-face visits, regular contact with caretakers and service providers, and communication with courts, caseworkers and attorneys. In counties like Jim Wells, that work often becomes the link between a child in crisis and the adults deciding what happens next.

Brush Country CASA said the April 2026 vigils were also intended as an opportunity for community members to come together in remembrance, reflection and support for children who have experienced abuse or neglect. The organization said the public was welcome to attend, and the courthouse setting underscored the point: child protection depends on judges, child welfare workers, volunteers and neighbors all paying attention.

The broader message carried beyond one evening in Alice. DFPS says its Office of Child Safety reviews fatalities, near fatalities and serious injuries to identify patterns and prevention strategies. A child abuse prevention vigil cannot solve those failures on its own, but it can keep the county focused on the children who are still at risk and on the volunteers who show up for them.