A series of presentations for kids in Marion County schools is winding down for the year; the Happy Bear program travels to schools in the area, teaching children about the risks of being improperly touched, and what to do if it may happen to them.

The program has a serious message presented in a lighthearted fashion; Happy Bear acts out situations which show children the difference between good touching and bad touching, and if they find themselves in a risky situation they’re taught to say “no,” get away and inform an adult — with the easy-to-remember slogan “No, Go, Tell.”

Pam Bettger has been conducting the Happy Bear sessions for several years now; she tells KNIA/KRLS News children remember this message as they get older, and it can lead them in later years to recognize dangerous situations close to home.

“So it’s not unusual that you get responses from counselors or students who after they hear about the program they have permission to say ‘something’s not right in my house, something’s not feeling good or this is wrong,’” Bettger says.

“Like, there…is a cousin who’s hurting them, not so much physically abusing them but hurting them, and nobody knew it. And then when they heard about bad touches, they were able to say, ‘this is happening.’”

Bettger says she has gotten to know children in the various schools over the years as they’ve gotten older, and they often recognize her for her work with Happy Bear. She says they continue to remember the “no, go, tell” slogan well into their teen years; and that there have been instances where children have used what they learned from Happy Bear to protect themselves.

For more about the Happy Bear program, tune in to today’s edition of Let’s Talk Knoxville.