Williamson County Judge Bill Gravell
GV: When did you first become involved with the WCCAC?
JG: My first encounter with the Williamson County Children’s Advocacy Center was in 2013 when I was Justice of the Peace. Signing arrest warrants was a daily task, but there were two detectives in particular who made my heart skip a beat. They did exceptional work but I knew if they were there, the warrants had to do with the Sheriff’s Office and due diligence in pursuing crimes against children.
They explained to me, on their first visit, how they arrived at the need for these warrants—through an outcry at the advocacy center. In my time at JP3, I signed hundreds of warrants, and all those crimes against children sickened me. It was the most unsettling thing I did as a JP.
GV: How do you impress upon others the importance of their mission?
JG: When I toured the facility, I learned it was so much more than police work. There are detectives, forensic nurses, representatives from the Attorney General and District Attorney offices, and counselors. For me, it wasn’t just the place to draw the information from the children, it was realizing that the CAC is actually the first stop for healing for kids who have been traumatized.
If we have a place to take children that is safe and comfortable, and in which we can obtain information we need, love them unconditionally, and help them begin the process of healing, that place is the most important and transformative building in Williamson County.
Judge Gravell
GV: How do you see your role in support of the CAC?
JG: When I became County Judge, I wanted to make sure the needs and the work at the CAC were always a top priority. That is why, over the last 18 months, I have worked even more closely with them to make sure there is county funding to continue their mission. It is just that important. I am pleased that our Commissioners Court have remained faithful to that mission and have unanimously voted, several times, to make protecting our kids one of our top priorities.
Still, it is disheartening that we have to we have to expand their building and their operations but, as Williamson County continues to grow, these crimes will continue to escalate.
With that in mind, I invite everyone to please join me at a very important groundbreaking at 10am, February 11. The WCCAC will be turning the dirt on a brand new facility at 1811 SE Inner Loop in Georgetown. Their current multi-million dollar campaign will expand programs and physical space to meet the challenges and growing demand for essential services.
I am eager to see the work begin for all the children who need us today and in the future.