Olive Crest Launches National Keeping Children Safe Campaign to Help Fight Child Abuse, Neglect and Abandonment.

Sheriff Lee Baca, Sheriff Michael Carona, Ralphs Grocery Company Join to Launch Campaign

SANTA ANA, Calif. -- Olive Crest Homes & Services for Abused Children, a nonprofit organization dedicated to preventing child abuse and protecting at-risk youth, today announced the launch of its national "Keeping Children Safe" and "Cuidar a Nuestros Ninos" campaigns for child abuse prevention. Sheriff Lee Baca of Los Angeles County, Sheriff Mike Carona of the County of Orange, along with Dave Hirz, president of Ralphs Grocery Company, came together this afternoon at CBS Studio Center in Studio City to address the issue of child endangerment, neglect and ways to prevent child abuse.

According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, more than four children die from abuse in the home every day in the United States, and every nine seconds, a child is reported beaten, raped, verbally assaulted, or severely neglected. Nearly 3 million cases of maltreatment of minors were reported every year; however, the actual number of child abuse incidences is estimated to be three times greater than the number that is actually reported to authorities.

"Child safety and building strong, healthy families has always been the main objective of Olive Crest," said Donald Verleur, CEO of Olive Crest. "With the 'Keeping Children Safe' and 'Cuidar a Nuestros Ninos' campaigns, we hope to raise awareness and support for child abuse prevention not only in Southern California, but throughout the nation. This is a problem that affects children everywhere, everyday and cuts across all ethnicities and income levels."

The announcement is accompanied by the launch of the "Keeping Children Safe" website and toll free hotline for reporting cases of child abuse. The website will offer a downloadable manual that outlines the different types of abuse, ways people can identify signs and symptoms of abuse, tips to prevent child abuse, and how to report situations that they believe to be endangering a child.

"It is important to raise awareness in the community on recognizing signs of potential abuse and knowing what to do if they notice such signs or see abuse first-hand," said Sheriff Mike Carona. "This campaign is a call-to-action to get people to immediately report any instances of abuse to the local authorities and learn more to keep our children safe."

Olive Crest is also reaching out to the Latino community with the simultaneous launch of "Cuidar a Nuestros Ninos."

"Child abuse knows no ethnicity or income level," said Sheriff Lee Baca. "Any effort must reach everyone in Southern California, including our growing Spanish speaking population."

"For more than 7 years, Ralphs has been committed to preventing child abuse in our communities throughout Southern California. We are proud to be a partner of Olive Crest and the 'Keeping Children Safe' Campaign," said Dave Hirz, President of Ralphs.

Ralphs is also asking its customers to support Olive Crest's efforts to prevent child abuse by purchasing selected products. Through May 5, each time a customer purchases a participating product at Ralphs, a donation will be made to Olive Crest for its Keeping Children Safe campaign.

To learn more about what you can do to get involved in the prevention of child abuse, visit www.KeepingChildrenSafe.com.

About Olive Crest

Since 1973, Olive Crest Homes & Services for Abused Children has been a leader in providing care for abused, abandoned and severely neglected children. Olive Crest is dedicated to preventing child abuse, to treating and educating at-risk children and to preserving the family... "One Life at a Time."[R]

Olive Crest continues to promote the safety and wellness of children and families through innovative programs including specialized education, foster and adoption, family preservation, and residential homes. Olive Crest's outreach serves California, Nevada, and the Pacific Northwest. For information call 1-800-550-CHILD (2445) or visit www.olivecrest.org.

About Ralphs

Ralphs Grocery Company was founded in 1873 and currently operates more than 260 supermarkets from its headquarters in Los Angeles. Last year, Ralphs contributed more than $15 million to support education, hunger relief and local nonprofit organizations in the communities served by the company's stores. The company is a division of The Kroger Co., (NYSE:KR), one of the nation's largest food retailers, based in Cincinnati, Ohio. For more information about Ralphs, please visit our website at www.ralphs.com.