By Beverly Hutchison, special to Charleston Currents | Nearly 6,000 children in Charleston and Berkeley counties are abused each year, a number that is expected to double over the next 20 years as our population grows.

For the last 26 years, the Dee Norton Child Advocacy Center has been the region’s leading resource to help prevent child abuse, protect abused children and help heal children and their families. However, the Center is at capacity and cannot meet the need without expanding. This month, the center launched Above and Beyond: The Campaign to Help Children Soar, a $5 million campaign that will enable the center to open a second full-service center in Mount Pleasant and renovate the center’s existing location on King Street.