PLEASE COMPLETE THE ONLINE SURVEY SURVEY ON THE RESPONSE TO SEXUAL ABUSE The Independent Task Force on the Response to Sexual Abuse within the Diocese of Springfield is inviting you to participate in a brief online survey of how you perceive the diocese’s response to allegations of clergy sexual abuse in the past. A link to the survey can be found at diospringfield.org and will be available from Thursday, Oct. 8 through Monday Oct. 19. Your valuable feedback will be used to help inform the development of a strategic plan with specific steps for improvement in the following areas: 1.Acknowledging the trauma of sexual abuse on members of our community and ensuring the allocation of resources needed to promote healing of survivors and the faith community; 2. Responding to all allegations of sexual abuse in our church community in a timely, compassionate and fair way; 3.Ensuring the diocese has a transparent system of protocols and procedures that guarantee respect and due process for all involved; 4.Ensuring that local church leadership is held responsible and accountable for failing to protect children and other vulnerable persons; 5.Holding those who have been credibly accused of sexual abuse responsible and accountable; and 6.Preventing sexual abuse of anyone in our faith communities in the future. Should you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact the Office of Safe Environment and Victim Assistance at (413) 452-0624 or at [email protected].