A garden made of pinwheels will be planted Monday at 5 p.m. outside Selma City Hall to bring awareness to the issue of child abuse.

The Central Alabama Regional Child Advocacy Center will host its “Plant a Pinwheel Garden” event as part of Child Abuse Prevention Month.

There were 200 victims of child abuse in Dallas County last year.

“Victims of child abuse are changed forever,” said executive director of the Central Alabama Regional Advocacy Center Lauri Cothran. “The Child Abuse Prevention Month is set aside to try to make everybody aware that it is a problem and to learn more about it.”

Awareness of the problem is a huge step in child abuse prevention, Cothran said.

While some organizations might use colors and ribbons to create recognition and awareness, supporters of Child Abuse Prevention Month decided to use pinwheels as their symbol.

Cothran said a movement began nationally a few years ago to use the pinwheel, and she followed suit last year.

Before the first pinwheel garden, the organization used blue balloons and ribbons for child abuse awareness.

“We will have a pinwheel in honor of each case of each child abuse report and celebrate the fact they (children) are safe and protected,” she said.

Attendees will be asked to take a pinwheel and spread out over the grounds of Selma City Hall and place them in the flowerbeds.

Cothran suggests anyone who would like to say a prayer for the victims to do so at the ceremony.

The child abuse cases reported in Dallas County didn’t solely affect the victims, but the community as a whole.

“The problem of child abuse affects many more people than anyone realizes,” Cothran said. “Most people think they don’t know anyone that’s going through this, and (that) they’re friends and family aren’t victims or perpetrators. It touches more lives than people realize.”