In April 2026, during Child Abuse Prevention Month, we celebrated an important new chapter for children and families across eastern North Carolina. ECU Health’s TEDI BEAR Children’s Advocacy Center and the Center for Child and Family Wellness (CCFW) officially came together under one roof, creating a more connected, compassionate space for healing, prevention and hope.
TEDI BEAR Children’s Advocacy is the largest advocacy center in North Carolina, caring for more than 900 children from 31 counties in eastern North Carolina annually. Providing a full spectrum of assessment, treatment, education and prevention for children who may have been victims of child abuse or neglect, TEDI BEAR provides specialized, trauma-informed care that helps reduce fear and uncertainty during an incredibly vulnerable time. Standing for Tender Evaluation, Diagnostic and Intervention for a Better Abuse Response, the center is a partnership between the Department of Pediatrics at the Brody School of Medicine and Maynard Children’s Hospital.
At the same time, the CCFW continues its important work focused on prevention, helping children stay healthy, safe and out of the hospital through programs centered on injury prevention, safe sleep, suicide prevention, asthma education and school health initiatives.
Together, these teams are creating a coordinated network of care that supports not only individual children, but entire families and communities throughout our region. Because of generous donors and community partners, children who walk through these doors are met not only with expert care, but with comfort, dignity and hope for the future.
For more information about how you can support TEDI BEAR, please contact the ECU Health Foundation at 252-847-5626 or click here and complete the form.