~MY OTHER KIDS~
One of the hardest jobs I ever had was counseling and caring for the youth in our county. I managed a youth shelter for two years and seen so much pain and suffering. It was enough to last me the rest of my life and yet, I guess I would do it all over again.
We took in children ranging in age from infancy to 18 years old. Some came to us as runaways from all parts of the United States. Others were brought in by agencies who had removed them from their homes due to neglect and/or abuse and sometimes just because they were unwanted.
The little babies that cried all the time because they were addicted to drugs at birth. And then those little ones that cried no more because of the abuse that they had endured. It broke their spirit and made them so meek. They didn't ask for any attention. They just wanted to be left in their cribs. Those were quite a challenge to bring out of their shells. Many learned to crawl, sit and walk while with us. Their development was slow because they were left in their cribs most of their lives. It was good to see them start moving around and getting into things like normal babies.
The children ages five, six and seven who had learned so early in life to be hard and cold. They had already built a wall around themselves to protect them from anymore pain. They were hard little nuts to crack as they didn't trust anyone.
The older children, our runaway teens, knowing all the answers, knowing they didn't want to be told what to do or how to live. They knew so much, but those runaways were the first to break down and cry upon arrival at the shelter. Just scared kids wanting to belong somewhere safe. They longed to be kids again, to have guidance and rules to follow. They only asked that someone would care enough to listen without being judgmental. They accepted their role at the shelter and seemed glad to be given responsibilities to carry out their contract while staying with us. Some of those runaways returned to their families when they left the shelter. There were others who kept traveling. They were the ones who had called their parents to let them know they were alright and the parents were not receptive to them. I wonder to this day where some of those kids are and how they are doing.
We started out with bare walls in the dining room at the shelter. After a two year period those walls were covered with drawings, poetry and writings from most of the children. They were encouraged to add as much as they wanted. Some were very talented, others became very creative, but the one thing they all had in common was sadness in whatever they put on those walls.
The shelter closed on January 1, 1998, due to lack of funding. There is no more shelter housing in my community for the children in need. I hope larger communites are able to get the grants that we were not able to obtain.
For those kids out there that I cared for and counseled, if you are still out there and should read this, please know that I am still here and that I care about you and hope that you are safe and well and just maybe have found some stability, peace of mind, true friendship and love in your world. You know it's possible, I proved it to you.
(800)621-4000:
National Runaway
Switchboard Confidential Assistance for
Runaway Children and those considering
running
away. (800)231-6946: National
Runaway Hotline. Other
Resources: "Home Free
Program".Check with Greyhound.
You can get home for free. ~24 HOUR
CHILD ABUSE HOTLINES~ Numbers you
can call for
help. (800)448-3000: Boys Town
National
Hotline (800)422-4453: Child/Help
USA/IO Foresters National Child Abuse
Hotline.
