Skip to main content

Rite Aid Foundation names KidChamp Award recipient

8/1/2019
The Rite Aid Foundation has revealed the recipient of its KidChamp Award.

Chris Kirchner, the executive director of the Philadelphia Children’s Alliance, or PCA, was recognized for her three decades of advocacy and outreach to ensure healing and justice for sexually abused children in Philadelphia.

She also oversees the Northeast Regional Children’s Advocacy Center, which is a federal grant project that provides training and technical assistance to communities in the northeastern United States interested in developing or maintaining a Child Advocacy Center.

In recognition of her service, Kirchner will receive a $10,000 donation to the Philadelphia Children’s Alliance from the retailer, and a $500 Rite Aid gift card during a special ceremony, the company said.

“Chris is the embodiment of what it means to be a voice for the voiceless. Child sexual abuse is a national crisis that changes children’s lives forever. However, thanks to the work of Chris and the PCA, these children can reclaim their lives and ensure that the abuse doesn’t define who they are,” Bryan Everett, the chief operating officer of Rite Aid and president of The Rite Aid Foundation said. “Not only has Chris worked to ensure that PCA fulfills its mission, she has also championed to expand PCA’s facility and provide care for more children than ever before, ensuring justice and healing for the innocent.”

PCA is Philadelphia’s only advocacy center for sexually abused children, and it brings together a team of professionals to help these children tell their stories through a coordinated process in a safe and welcoming facility.

When a report of child sex abuse is made in Philadelphia, the nonprofit organization’s intake team coordinates the investigation with a multi-disciplinary disciplinary team approach, while also working closely with representatives from the city’s police department’s special victims unit, Department of Human Services, as well as mental health and medical professional on behalf of the victim, the company said.

“It is truly an honor to be presented with this KidChamp Award. I am incredibly thankful to The Rite Aid Foundation and KidCents for their support of PCA and our efforts to provide a safe space where children can heal and begin to reclaim their lives,” Chris Kirchner, the executive director of the Philadelphia Children’s Alliance said. “Our work has helped change how we approach sexual abuse cases for children. I’m so very proud of what we have accomplished and promise to continue advocating to ensure these children continue to get the support and care they deserve.”

In addition, the city of Philadelphia built the Philadelphia Safety Collaborative in 2013 to co-locate PCA and all its partner agencies, which allows for 250 children to be served a month.

X
This ad will auto-close in 10 seconds