Affilited Organizations


Survivors Art Foundation

Affiliate: Friends of the Children

Survivors Art Foundation is pleased to announce its affiliation with the Friends of the Children. Dr. Martin Finkel, Medical Director and Founder of the Center for Children’s Support, is a member of the SAF Advisory Board.

Friends of the ChildrenFriends of the Children was formed to promote public awareness of child sexual abuse. Their goal is to work toward its prevention and treatment by supporting the efforts of the Center for Children’s Support.


Friends of the Children Quilt
Click to see samples of the Children’s Artwork.

Friends of the Children’s objectives are to:

  • Raise funds to provide medical and mental health services to child abuse victims and their families regardless of ability to pay.
  • Organize seminars and special events to educate the public.
  • Provide continuing education for professionals in the field.
  • Establish a free-standing child friendly facility dedicated to serving the needs of this population.

The Friends and the Center for Children’s Support annually presents awards to individuals whose significant contributions have enhanced the Center’s ability to meet the medical and mental health needs of abused children.

The Center for Children’s Support

The Center for Children’s Support at The University of Medicine and Dentistry, School of Osteopathic Medicine, in Stratford, New Jersey was developed in response to the insufficient resources available in the community to address the complex diagnostic and therapeutic needs of victims and suspected victims of child abuse.

The Center’s mission is to provide high quality, sensitive and coordinated medical and mental health services utilizing a multi-disciplinary model. The staff works cooperatively with Child Protective Services and the Prosecutor’s Office thereby minimizing the stress experienced by abused children and their families during investigatory and prosecutorial proceedings. The Center is committed to complementing the direct clinical services offered with related research, training and consultation.

1-609-566-7036
42 East Laurel Rd., Suite 1100
Stratford, NJ 08084


Dr. Martin Finkel, D.O., FACOP
Founder of the Center for Children’s Support, Member SAF Advisory Board

Martin FinkelMartin A. Finkel, D.O., FACOP is a Professor of Clinical Pediatrics and Medical Director and Founder of the Center for Children’s Support at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey-School of Osteopathic Medicine. Dr. Finkel was the first clinician to introduce colposcopy on the east coast for the evaluation of the sexually abused child and authored the first paper in the medical literature on the healing chronology of acute anogenital trauma as a result of sexual abuse. He has been a leader in the development of services for abused children in New Jersey where he co-chairs the Governor’s Task Force on Child Abuse and Neglect and is a founding commissioner of the Children’s Trust Fund.

As a result of his efforts, New Jersey is the first state to develop the foundation of a regional diagnostic network linked through video transmission affording case consultation for physicians in the network. Dr. Finkel has been a strong advocate for multidisciplinary intervention strategies and spearheaded the states acceptance of a county model of intervention with full time MDT coordinators. He has provided extensive professional education for all disciplines throughout New Jersey, developed curriculum materials regarding medical evaluation of sexually abused child and authored the medical section of NJ’s Best Practices Manual. He completed a term as the Associate Editor for the medical section of the American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children’s publication, “The Advisor.” Dr. Finkel co-chairs their Task Force for the development of Medical Standards for the Evaluation of the Sexually Abused Child.

Dr. Finkel’s research interest continue to be directed at further elucidating the changes in the anogenital anatomy as a result of trauma and interexaminer reliability in the interpretation of physical findings. The Center has an extensive library of colposcopic case slides and video colposcopic examinations which serve to assist in the training of visiting physicians from throughout the region.


Dr. Esther Deblinger
Clinical Director, Center for Children’s Support; Member SAF Advisory Board

Esther DeblingerDr. Esther Deblinger is the Clinical Director of the Center for Children’s Support, and Associate Professor of Clinical Psychiatry and Adjunct Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at UMDNJ-SOM. Dr. Deblinger received her B.A. from the State University of N.Y. at Binghamton and her M.A. and Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the State University of N.Y. at Stony Brook. Dr. Deblinger was previously the Co-Director of the Child Sexual Abuse Diagnostic and Treatment Center at the Medical College of Pennsylvania and has extensive research, clinical and teaching experience in the field of child sexual abuse. She has been actively involved in the development of research examining the impact of CSA and the treatment of this resulting sequelae and has published and presented research nationwide on this and other abuse related issues. Dr. Deblinger’s research has been funded by the Foundation of UMDNJ, NCCAN and NIMH.

For more information about this organization, please visit http://www.friendsofthechildren.org/children/