Keep An Eye On Your Children

[SnootieTootie]

Just read about some Perv, Sherwood Stevenson, age 71, from Pennsylvania, accused of going to Miami in Dec of 2009, boarding a cruise ship (RC) with the intention to molest a child.

 

He succeeded in molesting a 6 year old boy in a hot tub before being detained by ship security.

 

Security was going to question him about the first incident,when they found him with a second boy.

 

People, don't let your children out of your sight for a moment on a cruise ship.

 

This just makes me ill thinking about it.

[MariaNC]

Thanks for posting this. My children are still at the age where we don't let them out of our sight in public places but it serves as a good reminder to be extra vigilant. Unfortunately horrific things can happen anywhere but I remember from our previous cruise that we noticed a significant number of children/young adults not under parental supervision. Parents need to be reminded a cruise ship is a public space. If you don't let your child wander around the mall etc.. by themselves you shouldn't do it on a cruise ship either. My heart goes out to the children and their families who encountered this pedophile.

[Julienatul]

Great advice!! I think people let their guards down on cruise ships. Bad people can lurk anywhere. I agree, never let your kids out of your sight.

[rogerjeny]

These is really nice thread it serves as a good reminder to be extra vigilant. Unfortunately horrific things can happen anywhere but I remember from our previous cruise that we noticed a significant number of children/young adults not under parental supervision .

[lamolesky]

A cruise ship is no different than anywhere else. Don't think that you are in a safe environment just because it is a cruise ship. I still can't believe the parents who let their kids roam the ship anytime of day or night. In order to have a good and safe time you need to act as vigilant as you do anywhere else.

[lilipad2]

Just a question, along the same lines. Do ya'll feel safe with the various cruise lines' Kids Clubs? I was thinking of using this onboard to get a break and for him to have some fun. Looking at this article, it appears the kiddo was in a public area (more or less) and was a victim of parents not paying attention (I assume -- not rushing to judgment here either.)

[cb at sea]

I've never heard of any child being neglected or harmed in one of the "clubs"...you can safely let your child have fun there. It is the open, public areas of the ship where you should control your child.

And, you need to teach kids how to determine if "strangers" are ok....you don't want them afraid to ask for help, should they need it, and kids need practice to be able to determine if someone "feels right" or not! Adults usually have that ability, and it comes from practice....never tell you child that all strangers are "evil or bad".....at some point, your child may have to enlist the help of someone that they "feel" they can trust, if you're not around!

so, watch out for your children, but don't engulf them in a "bubble"...that makes them afraid and less independant....and independant is what you strive for your kid's to eventually be!

[CanadianTwosome]

I think comparing a cruise ship to 'any community' is a bit of a misnomer. Sure, it's 'like' a community as far as diversity of people and activities, but the difference is that it is guaranteed to have children on board. To me, this makes it important to be more diligent than I am at home. Just like I am able to book a nice cruise vacation for my family knowing that there are great activities on board for kids, so can a pedophile - for exactly the same reason. There was a thread here some time ago regarding a man who commented to someone about how cute their child's pictures were in the gallery and it freaked them out. Personally, I was only surprised by the fact that he admitted he'd been looking. A cruise ship's photo gallery is full of pictures of kids of all ages wearing everything from bathing suits to formalwear - and I am absolutely certain that there is at least one person on any cruise who visits the area at least once a day just to look at them.

 

I also think that when people are away from home, in 'international waters' - especially with so much access to alcohol - they may be more likely to behave in ways they wouldn't otherwise. I'm actually a bit surprised sometimes that there aren't more incidents than there are - of course, we only know about what actually gets reported.

 

So... wow, I sound a bit paranoid, don't I? Sorry! I'm really not, I just think it's important to be diligent. I see it as no different than ensuring my child is wearing her bike helmet, or has a sturdy harness if she goes rock climbing; it's just planning ahead for potential dangers. I have nothing but sympathy for the families involved in this incident, but at the same time, I cannot fathom allowing my 6 year old to be alone in a hot tub with a strange old man - and if I were in there with him, he wouldn't have been anywhere near any of the other adults (at least that's how it's always been with our daughter). I'm not the least bit worried about appearing 'overprotective' on vacations; if she ever starts giving me grief about it, I'll gladly accept it over her being hurt in any way that I could have prevented.

[lilipad2]

Yeah, I don't mean to sound paranoid either. LOL. My impression is that they must be good otherwise people wouldn't use them. I'm not so much worried that my child will be (God forbid) abducted or abused, but that he will be in a safe, clean, friendly, etc. environment. It's good to hear from other parents who have used these various facilities. Thank goodness for communities like this where we can help each other out. Heavens know we parents need it, right?

[Onessa]

I deal with the volunteer screening process for a number of NPOs in my area (soccer, scouting, school, etc.) We spend the $$ to do background checks, we have a good relationship with the local police and sherrifs departments. These are background checks for community volunteers. I know that for-profit organizations whose reputations (and hence, whose bottom lines) depend upon reputable employees do extensive background checks.

 

One of the counselors who was on three (yes THREE!) of the cruises on which we travelled with our DD also turned out to be the BIL of someone we know. While this was a while back, he explained what RCCI did for background checks for their youth club employees and the very strict adherance to their policies (kid to adult ratios, who can and cannot be where, tolieting help, what you can do when a kid is sick, etc.) -- all to make certain that anyone with unpure motives who does get by the screening would have no opportunity to act upon those motives, and also to protect the counselors from any unwarrented complaints (most of the kids clubs areas are covered by survaliance cameras and tapes).

 

So while you and your kids still need to be aware of what is going on in the kids clubs, they are relatively safe and a good opportunity for your kids to broaden their horizons (get away from hovering mom & dad, meet some new friends, deal with some new rules, learn some new games).

 

When not in the clubs, young kids should be closely supervised, older kids should travel in "packs" at all times and have some very specific rules as to their behavior.

[drblue]

I deal with the volunteer screening process for a number of NPOs in my area (soccer, scouting, school, etc.) We spend the $$ to do background checks, we have a good relationship with the local police and sherrifs departments. These are background checks for community volunteers. I know that for-profit organizations whose reputations (and hence, whose bottom lines) depend upon reputable employees do extensive background checks.

 

One of the counselors who was on three (yes THREE!) of the cruises on which we travelled with our DD also turned out to be the BIL of someone we know. While this was a while back, he explained what RCCI did for background checks for their youth club employees and the very strict adherance to their policies (kid to adult ratios, who can and cannot be where, tolieting help, what you can do when a kid is sick, etc.) -- all to make certain that anyone with unpure motives who does get by the screening would have no opportunity to act upon those motives, and also to protect the counselors from any unwarrented complaints (most of the kids clubs areas are covered by survaliance cameras and tapes).

 

So while you and your kids still need to be aware of what is going on in the kids clubs, they are relatively safe and a good opportunity for your kids to broaden their horizons (get away from hovering mom & dad, meet some new friends, deal with some new rules, learn some new games).

 

When not in the clubs, young kids should be closely supervised, older kids should travel in "packs" at all times and have some very specific rules as to their behavior.

What are NPOs and BIL?

[akcruz]

What are NPOs and BIL?

 

Non profit organization and Brother in law I believe.

 

As for this incident, there have been a number of posts over the past week about this. Here is a link to another here on the family board http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1224886 .

 

While I think this is a horrible situation, I would like to know how a 6 year old ended up in a hot tub without an adult to supervise?

 

We sit down with our kids and go over the rules before we cruise. They are now older teens and we have learned to check in on them periodically to make sure they are with the people and where they said they would be. Even after they are old enough to be out on their own, you still need to keep an eye on them.