April 21, 2026

National Child Abuse Prevention Month highlights story of survivor

REGIONAL
Story and photos by Carolee McGrath

SPRINGFIELD –As the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops is encouraging parishes to offer special prayer services and Masses during National Child Abuse Prevention Month, which is observed each April, a victim is coming forward to share her experience of the abuse she suffered at the hands of someone who was supposed to represent the church.

“We trusted him. He was elevated in our family because he was a priest,” said Ellen Mrha. She said she was abused by Placid Kaczorek, a deceased Franciscan priest who is listed on the diocesan website under the Finding of Credibility of an Allegation of Sexual Abuse of a Minor by Another Diocese or Religious Order. Mrha said seeing his name on the list of credibly abused priests let her know she wasn’t alone.

“After he died, I had tried to get him on bishops’ accountability. Someone sent me a link and there it was. It was devastating for me because now I had verification that there were other victims. And I came forward because I want to stand in solidarity with them and other victims and let them know they were not alone,” she said.

An allegation being found credible does not indicate a finding of guilt. Because he was deceased when other allegations were brought forward against him, Kaczorek was unable to respond. Nonetheless, the Review Board carefully reviewed allegations brought forward against him and found them to be credible. In addition, the review board found that there was more than one credible allegation.

Mrha said her abuse included sexual abuse and inappropriate pictures of a minor. She added she was bonded to him through the trauma he inflicted on her.

“He was already grooming my parents as a priest, as a spiritual advisor. I never knew a life without him. What I want to say about grooming, people who are highly sophisticated in abuse will take years to groom you to get the trust of the child. Eventually the grooming started with me. I didn’t know that this was not normal,” she said. “He was considered to be part of our family, would stay overnight and had his own room,” she said.

“The grooming is very methodical so the parents and the caregivers get desensitized.”

Mrha said she hopes that by sharing her story she will encourage other victims to come forward and seek help.

“It’s up to every victim to deal with it in the best way they can. Maybe reporting is not for everyone, it was for me,” she said. “What I hope for in the future is that your victim assistance program will be called and that will result in victims getting therapy.”

Michael Collins is the director of the Office of Safe Environment and Victim Assistance. Collins previously served as area director of the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families (DCF).

“It takes a tremendous amount of courage and confidence to come forward, as survivors face social and emotional barriers such as the fear of not being believed, shame, isolation and a feeling of not knowing if they were the only victims of their abuser. Ellen, like so many others who have come forward, has tremendous strength and courage,” said Collins. “She has come forward several times to report her abuse, particularly at a young age which is uncommon because of earlier mentioned barriers. Ellen’s motivation for reaching out to our office recently was to share her story in the hopes of breaking down those barriers, and letting others know they are not alone and there is support.”

In 2021, the Diocese of Springfield updated the list of credibly accused individuals to include deceased priests. In addition, the diocese has also taken several other steps to improve the handling of allegations of sexual abuse to promote healing and transparency including a joint Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the three district attorneys’ offices, whose jurisdictions cover all of western Massachusetts.

“Our message for other survivors regarding coming forward would be, you are not alone.  You will be met with compassion and understanding. The abuse was never your fault and we go at your pace,” Collins said. “There will be no pressure with support. Also, the report is confidential but all crimes are reported to the DA’s office,” he said.

Mrha said she wants other families to be aware of the warning signs.

“It was about power. I want families to understand especially when someone is coming in to try to groom your child. There are multiple layers and strategies that predators will use for them to gain parent or caregiver trust and then trust of the child. People need to be aware when someone you have trusted starts behaving this way and uses grooming techniques. It’s a very deliberate process. I just don’t want parents to look back and think, why didn’t I see this. So just be aware,” she said.

“If this did happen to you and your child, place accountability on the perpetrator. I don’t want parents to feel guilt. Hold the person accountable who did it. You were deceived by the perpetrator. To heal, hold the person accountable and those who knew,” she said.

A Mass for survivors of abuse will be celebrated Sunday, April 26 at 10 a.m. at St. Michael’s Cathedral in Springfield. Currently, two rows of blue pin wheels line the walkway of the cathedral. The blue pinwheel is the national symbol for child abuse prevention.