City of Canfield to participate in Family Court Awareness Month

CANFIELD — The city of Canfield will officially declare November as Family Court Awareness Month on Wednesday.

"I chose to bring Family Court Awareness Month to Canfield because the family court system is failing our children and we need to bring attention to this issue," local organizer Nancy Fingerhood said in a news release.

Fingerhood said this is an opportunity for those affected by the family court system to come together and raise awareness about the shortcomings, the failures and the impact they have on children.

It's also an opportunity for community members to unite and discuss ways to impact change at a local level, she said.

Mayor Richard Duffett will preside at Wednesday's council meeting at 5:30 p.m. at the Francis J. McLaughlin Municipal Building, 104 Lisbon St. Among the agenda items is to recognize November as Family Court Awareness Month.

Family Court Awareness Month was founded in 2020 by Tina Swithin of One Mom's Battle, an international support group for those affected by the family court system.

"Many people are shocked to discover that most states do not have domestic violence training requirements prior to a judicial officer presiding over family court cases," Swithin said in the release. "The states that do have requirements for domestic violence training are, at best, very minimal. This lack of training can ultimately determine the unfortunate fate of innocent children."

This story was originally published November 1, 2021 at 2:35 PM with the headline "City of Canfield to participate in Family Court Awareness Month."