You don’t realize you’re being abused. You tell yourself, “that’s just how he is, he can’t help it,” and everything’s okay again once he tells you he loves you. You make excuses to your friends when they question why you don’t leave him for treating you poorly. “He’ll grow up, I know he truly cares about me deep down.” But the truth is, abuse doesn’t have to be physical to hurt. And there’s never an excuse to put up with it.

The Super Bowl has come and gone. We can all agree Houston did an incredible job! Here’s a look back at everything that went on in the 10-day period.

One in four teens will sustain physical, psychological, or sexual abuse by dating partners, with 10% to 15% becoming victims of severe physical violence. Many victims of dating violence (DV) experience devastating consequences, including acute and chronic mental and physical health problems, suicidality, delinquency, risky sexual behavior, substance abuse, and poor school performance. Moreover, perpetrators of teen DV are at increased risk for continuing intimate partner violence in adulthood, and victims are at risk for future victimization and perpetration.

January was National Human Trafficking Awareness month. According to the National Human Trafficking Hotline which received 26,727 calls in 2016, the number of reported cases increased by 37% last year. Like so many other organizations in the nation we joined in the efforts to spread the word about this modern form of slavery which – sad, but true – is the second largest crimina

Do me a favor and count to forty—in that time period a child was reported missing in the United States. How scary is that! According to the Department of Justice, approximately 800,000 children are reported missing each year. This statistic includes the various considerations of “missing” children as in runaways and lost children. It is also heavily weighted from the unfortunate occurrences of abduction.

On Friday, Jan. 27, 2017, I had the incredible pleasure of announcing and cutting the ribbon on the very first Crime Stoppers of Houston headquarters anywhere in the world, The Dave Ward Building, Crime Stoppers of Houston. The new home will be in Midtown, on bustling Main Street. To say I am proud and was moved is an understatement.

For many, hearing the words “Super Bowl” conjures thoughts of fantastic football, fabulous food, fun with friends, and flamboyant commercials. As for us Houstonians, hearing that “Super Bowl LI” is coming to our town may elicit these sentiments and some not so happy ones, like the thought of traffic at any hour given the growing construction! Despite the numerous associations we make with this event, many of us would probably never link the Super Bowl to an issue like Human Trafficking.

Whether or not a team you like will make it into the Super Bowl, there is an increased excitement surrounding the event, especially for us Houstonians. Many have been wondering if there’s an opportunity to cash in by renting a room in their home – or their entire home – to out-of-town fans here for the big game.

With 89.79 million viewers, a wardrobe malfunction, and a three-point game at the 2004 Houston Super Bowl XXXVIII, what will Houston Super Bowl LI bring us? Only a few days away and several games to watch before knowing our two opponents, the only thing we can be certain of is our safety and how we can prepare for one of the most anticipated weekends of the year.

Graffiti is from the Greek word to write; it’s what we call inscriptions or drawings that have been added illicitly on exterior walls or other surfaces within public view. It’s a practice that has existed for centuries, dating back to Ancient Greek and Egyptian times as well as the Roman Empire…. Here’s my problem – no matter what the reason, it’s illegal. And when graffiti touches public property with hateful speech, I have an even bigger problem with it.