By: Richard L. Smith
As New Jersey’s FY2026 budget takes shape, leaders at the Senator Wynona M. Lipman Child Advocacy Center—known as Wynona’s House—are urging state lawmakers to reinstate $575,000 in essential funding that has supported the center’s work for the past 25 years.
The proposed budget cut threatens the continued operation of a facility that serves more than 950 child abuse victims and 1,200 family members each year throughout Essex County.
Named after the late State Senator Wynona M. Lipman, the center functions as the legislatively designated Child Advocacy Center (CAC) for the county and is the only fully co-located facility of its kind in the state.
Its model brings together law enforcement, prosecutors, medical professionals, child protection workers, and mental health providers to deliver coordinated, trauma-informed care.
“This funding is not just a budget line—it’s a lifeline,” said Robert Crocker, Executive Director and CEO of Wynona’s House. “Without it, we jeopardize the safety, justice, and healing of hundreds of children each year. We urge our state lawmakers to stand with us and protect New Jersey’s most vulnerable population.”
To mobilize public support, Wynona’s House has launched an advocacy website—StandUpForNJChildren.org—which enables residents to contact lawmakers, learn more about the center’s impact, and take action with just a few clicks.
“This platform gives every New Jersey resident the power to help protect children,” said Nadine White, a family advocate with the organization’s Family Financial Strengthening Initiative. “In just one to two minutes, you can raise your voice and urge lawmakers to restore the critical funding that ensures child victims are not forgotten.”
Wynona’s House operates in all 22 municipalities of Essex County and coordinates care through a multidisciplinary team that includes 20 hospital staff members and 35 employees from the prosecutor’s office.
State funding also supports seven child protection workers and 18 Wynona’s House personnel, including family advocates, program coordinators, prevention specialists, and security staff.
Officials at the center say that cutting this funding would severely disrupt services that are often a child’s first and only pathway to justice, healing, and safety.