Advocacy - Fighting for Change in Infant Loss and Child Welfare
The loss of a child is a tragedy no parent should ever endure. At Too Beautiful for Earth, our advocacy is rooted in the story of Caroline’s son, AJ, whose preventable death in 2016 revealed critical gaps in Oregon’s child welfare, medical, and law enforcement systems. Since then, Caroline’s relentless efforts—including a wrongful death lawsuit, groundbreaking legislation, and statewide training initiatives—have helped shift policies and raise awareness around the urgent need for better protections for children.
AJ’s legacy has contributed to:
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The passage of Senate Bill 490, holding unlicensed daycare providers accountable for substantiated abuse claims
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Opening access to police records to break down barriers to justice
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The launch of Oregon’s first training for primary care providers to recognize signs of child abuse
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Expanded awareness of system failures in both state agencies and healthcare institutions
At Too Beautiful for Earth, we believe child abuse is preventable—but prevention requires more than awareness. It demands adequate resources, interagency accountability, and active community engagement. Our mission is to cultivate a heartfelt, informed community that not only heals together but also pushes for meaningful change—honoring every child lost with action and enduring hope.
Legislative Efforts
Caroline’s advocacy, born from the loss of AJ, has focused on improving training and accountability for child welfare and medical professionals to prevent tragedies and better support grieving families. Below, we outline key legislative efforts in Oregon, including those inspired by her work and broader initiatives to address systemic gaps.
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Background: Enacted in 2007, Karly’s Law (named after a child killed due to abuse) requires mandatory reporting of certain injuries in children under two by medical professionals, law enforcement, and others. In AJ’s case, his pediatrician failed to report injuries, and no training ensured compliance, revealing a critical gap.
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Caroline’s Efforts: In 2018, Caroline met with Senator Sara Gelser Blouin to highlight Karly’s Law’s enforcement failures. She pushed for mandatory training for medical professionals, leading to her role on a 2021–2022 advisory committee with Oregon Child Abuse Solutions (OCAS) that piloted Oregon’s first child abuse training program for primary care providers. This program, now ongoing, teaches recognition of abuse signs and compliance with reporting laws.
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Current Status: The Oregon Medical Board still does not require proof of Karly’s Law training for medical professionals. This gap has been a point of advocacy for individuals like Caroline, who continue to push for closing this gap to ensure all medical providers are adequately trained in recognizing and responding to potential child abuse cases.
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Background: AJ’s death at an unlicensed daycare exposed the lack of oversight for such providers. Oregon’s laws existed but lacked enforcement, allowing the provider to continue operating post-incident.
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Caroline’s Efforts: From 2018–2019, Caroline collaborated with Senator Gelser Blouin to draft Senate Bill 490 creating a blacklist registry for unlicensed childcare providers with founded DHS cases. The Oregon Department of Education began enforcing this by targeting non-compliant providers, leading to the closure of the daycare involved in AJ’s case.
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Current Status: The registry framework is in place, but full implementation remains ongoing. Recent legislative discussions (2025) emphasize improving childcare oversight, with advocates like Gelser Blouin pushing for stricter accountability despite resistance from providers citing reduced access to care.
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Need: Caroline’s lawsuit revealed a critical and often overlooked gap: medical professionals—including pediatricians—frequently lack sufficient training to recognize signs of child abuse. Medical school curricula devoted to this subject are minimal, often tacked onto already lengthy education programs and often requiring additional costly training, which limits widespread, comprehensive learning.
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Advocacy: During the review of AJ’s case, Caroline had an in-depth conversation with the retired medical examiner who worked on the case. This examiner has been a passionate advocate for improving child abuse education in medical schools, having recognized firsthand the glaring deficiencies in how child abuse symptomology and recognition are taught to future healthcare providers. Until this meeting, Caroline was unaware of this significant educational gap. Like many parents, she had trusted that pediatricians—especially a young, recently trained provider chosen for her son—would be well-informed and up-to-date on child abuse indicators and protocols.
In response to these systemic failures, Caroline collaborated with the Oregon Child Abuse Solutions (OCAS) on their “Child Physical Abuse Training for Primary Care Providers” Pilot Program (2021–2022). This multidisciplinary effort brought together victim advocates, district attorney offices, child abuse medical specialists, child protection hotline staff, and other child welfare professionals to develop foundational training aimed at improving early recognition and appropriate response to child physical abuse within healthcare and legal systems. While the retired medical examiner was not directly involved in the OCAS training, her advocacy and Caroline’s ongoing efforts highlight the urgent need for standardized, comprehensive child abuse education throughout medical training—an essential step toward preventing future oversights and protecting vulnerable children.
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Join Our Fight for Change
Caroline’s advocacy for AJ’s legacy continues to fuel real, lasting change—but your voice matters too. Learn more about current legislative efforts, share your story, or get involved in pushing for stronger training, greater accountability, and meaningful support for grieving families. Together, we can turn heartbreak into action and create a safer, more compassionate future for all children.