CHS Board Member Sen. Deb Soholt Receives Award for Helping Children and Families

Posted on October 05, 2021

CHS Board Member Sen. Deb Soholt, R-Sioux Falls, was given the Outstanding Service Award from the Center for the Prevention of Child Maltreatment during the 21st Annual Community Response to Child Maltreatment Sept. 29 at the Sioux Falls Convention Center.

Each year a community partner or advocate working in the field of child maltreatment prevention is recognized. The award recipient goes above and beyond to stop all child abuse and neglect in South Dakota by protecting its greatest asset—children.

“We are so honored that Senator Soholt serves on our Board of Directors,” says Michelle Lavallee, CEO. “Her expertise, achievements and interests align perfectly with ours.”

Soholt chaired the Center for the Prevention of Child Maltreatment (CPCM) advisory board from the Center’s inception in 2017 to 2020. Rep. Tim Reed, R-Brookings, serves as the current advisory board chair and presented the award to Soholt, who first took action to help prevent child sexual abuse in South Dakota by listening to the stories of her constituents’ struggle to find a cohesive response to child maltreatment.

From 2014-2016 Soholt led the Jolene’s Law Task Force that identified ways South Dakota could create a system to better know about, respond to, and prevent child maltreatment. She presented the group’s strategic plan to then-Gov. Dennis Daugaard in 2016 and advocated for the creation of CPCM at the University of South Dakota.

“Senator Soholt’s continued dedication to making our state stronger, safer, and more resilient has led to where we are today – all of us working together for our children and families,” Reed said. “Thank you, Senator Soholt, for your service to our great state.”