Family’s journey drives passion for preventing child abuse

Henry Johnson’s life changed when it was just getting started.

So did the lives of his parents, Steven and Marissa Johnson.

The Johnsons don’t want what happened to them to happen to any other parent and child.

That’s why for 13 years, they have hosted Henry’s Run, which raises awareness and funds for child-abuse prevention through Sanford Child’s Voice, part of the Sanford Health Foundation. The 14th annual 5K walk/run will be April 25, starting and ending at Falls Park.

The funds raised through Henry’s Run have made a difference at Child’s Voice, which usually assists 1,200 to 1,300 children annually, said Dr. Nancy Free, a pediatrician and Child’s Voice health director.

Accredited by the National Children’s Alliance, the mission of Child’s Voice is to provide a child-friendly place where kids can safely be evaluated after suspected incidents of child abuse. Child-protection services, law enforcement and medical personnel refer the children when there are concerns regarding injuries, neglect or sexual abuse. Neutral interviewers talk to the child and nonoffending caregivers, Free said.

“The interview is recorded and copied so the child doesn’t have to be questioned over and over again,” she said. “We try to be a one-stop shop. Children may be asked further questions in a follow-up but by a neutral, child-friendly face.”

Henry was only 5 1/2 months old when his father picked him up from child care and realized that something was wrong. Today, he is days away from his 19th birthday, a 2025 graduate of the South Dakota School for the Blind and Visually Impaired and participating in a program that teaches job and life skills before he enters the workforce.

The Johnsons moved from Hartford to Aberdeen so Henry could attend the special school. The family now includes Claire, 17, who is a high school junior. They will return this weekend for the event named after Henry. Marissa Johnson said her son doesn’t realize how he and the event are intertwined. He does know how much fun it will be.

“All Henry knows honestly is being happy,” Johnson said. “He’s so fun, he’s so loving, and what he does understand is he gets to hang out with family, he gets to talk to firemen. That’s fun for him.”

His parents see Henry’s Run as a way for something good to come out of a difficult situation. They shrugged off any inclination toward bitterness a long time ago.

“We’re Christians, and I know we can make good come from this,” Johnson said. “Henry is always going to be taken care of. Our strong faith is honestly what got us through all of this. I’m not going to be swallowed up by hate by any means. We’re going to look at what we can do to prevent this.”

When Henry was rushed from a medical clinic to a hospital, physicians diagnosed shaken baby syndrome. A jury acquitted his child care provider of aggravated assault. The Johnsons later filed a civil lawsuit against the woman; it was settled out of court, Johnson said.

After the injury, Henry was left with visual impairments and developmental disabilities. “All four corners” of Henry’s brain were damaged, Johnson said. One eye is completely without vision. When he was about 10, his parents realized that his other eye could tell when a light was on or off.

“Even his eye doctor was shocked,” Johnson said. “But something was getting through to the optic nerve.”

Henry uses a visual cane to alert people to his vision difficulties. He has learning disabilities, and his left side is weaker than his right. Fears that he would be unable to walk and talk did not materialize, although it took years of therapy.

A social butterfly, Henry likes to listen to music and tell jokes. In Special Olympics, he participates in bowling, swimming and track. Meet him, and he’ll quickly compile a list of your favorite activities, his mother said.

“He’s just happy all the time,” she said.

While the Johnsons focus this weekend on raising awareness and education, Child’s Voice will continue the mission it started in 1998. Free joined in 2004. Educational activities supported by Henry’s Run funds center on the dangers of shaking and physical punishment.

“We know (a baby’s) crying is the biggest trigger for physical abuse,” Free said. “Prevention involves awareness to triggers and how to respond and also what other things can we do to support families to reduce any child being harmed. The prevention program we’re using now incorporates dedicated training for abusive and shaken baby syndrome to decrease stress in family and address needs the families might have that increase the risks.”

Studies have shown that babies can cry for up to five hours a day, and parents can feel stressed when the infant has been fed, slept, changed and seems to have no reason for unhappiness, Free said. The importance of a nurturing environment also is emphasized.

Child’s Voice educators advise parents against telling a child not to let anyone touch them. Children can’t control what other people do, but they can feel guilty like they were responsible.

“Kids are less likely to tell because they feel responsible,” Free said. Instead, they should be told, “It should not happen, but if it does, I’m going to help you.”

It takes a team to evaluate children when concern about mistreatment is reported, Free said. Child’s Voice works in partnership with law enforcement, children’s protective services and the state’s attorney to keep kids safe, she said.

“Parenting is difficult, but it’s the most rewarding thing you can do,” she said. “We need to encourage families to connect with their kids, to put their phones down, to really treasure this time, to make eye contact with your child, to spend time with them.”

To learn more about Henry’s Run, click here.

To learn more about Child’s Voice, click here.