History of Butterfly Bridge, Children's Advocacy Center
Prior to 2009, Child Protect Children's Advocacy Center located in Montgomery, Alabama served child abuse victims who lived in Chilton County for more than 20 years. The services were only provided at the office in Montgomery. Under the leadership of Jannah Morgan Bailey and Jana Conlee Zuelzke, the community saw the need for a local center to serve the children in Chilton County. Because of the overwhelming support from the community, some of the child advocacy center services began to be provided in a rental space at the office of Renee Smith and Associates in October of 2009. Through the generosity of the family of Mrs. Elizabeth Johnson and Mr. and Mrs. J. Sam Johnson, needed renovations were done at the facility to make it suitable for the children who would come there. The addition of the new satellite office greatly lessened the difficulty for all children who needed the services to receive them.
After the satellite office had been in existence for two years in Chilton County, it was clear that a new space was needed due to the number of children being seen. A space was chosen in downtown Clanton. Renovations were done under the guidance of Zuelzke Contracting and Mr. Tommy Glasscock. Many community volunteers had a hand in the renovations and donated hours of their time. The children's advocacy center moved in October 2011 to the new and more spacious location.
As the demand for services increased annually, board and staff of Child Protect Children's Advocacy Center felt that the next best step was for the center in Chilton County to become an independent children's advocacy center and no longer a satellite office of the children's advocacy center in Montgomery. In the fall of 2012, the center in Chilton County was approved as a 501c3 non-profit under the new name, Butterfly Bridge Children's Advocacy Center. The founding board members are Mrs. Angie Barnett, Mr. Hoyt Chastain, Mr. Mike Curry, and Mr. Mike Schiermann.
In October 2017, the service area of Butterfly Bridge CAC extended to Autauga and Elmore counties. Similar to Chilton County, a satellite center was established in each of those counties in early 2017 by Child Protect Children’s Advocacy Center staff under the leadership of Emily Hutcheson. The satellite centers officially became a part of Butterfly Bridge CAC on October 1, 2017.
As the agency continued to grow, the Chilton County office moved into a new, forever home in December 2021 after a very successful capital campaign. The new location is in cooperation with the City of Clanton and renovations were completed by Gene Foshee Inc.
Today, children in Autauga, Elmore, and Chilton counties are able to receive specialized services at a center full of childhood comforts right in their own community. On site, a specialized staff conducts forensic interviews at the request of local law enforcement and DHR, coordinates the local multi-disciplinary team, provides therapy for the children, and advocacy throughout the life of the case in the criminal justice system.
