I awakened this morning with one question on my mind. I am scheduled for an interview mid-morning today to talk with an individual about my affiliation with Texas Baptist Children's Home and Children at Heart Ministries that included all four of the affiliate service- delivery corporations: STARRY (Round Rock), Miracle Farm (Brenham), Gracewood (Houston, and Texas Baptist Children's Home (Round Rock).
Though I was not specifically asked about Hearthstone (Midland), I spent ten years with that organization. Mid-way through my tenure there, Texas Baptist Children's Home gave the program to Dallas based - Bucker Children and Family Services to operate to operate. Buckner operated a children's home in Lubbock, and it was thought they were strategically better located in West Texas to cultivate donors. TBCH planned for me to return to Round Rock and assist the President.
Hearthstone was a group home for children established by the Junior League of Midland and the First Baptist Church. The group home provided both emergency shelter care for children and longer-term care. The property was deeded to Texas Baptist Children's Home to operate.
The answer I had not settled in my mind was: "Tell me something that happened in the ministry that you will never forget." For all six entities, the relationships shared with staff, children (particularly at Hearthstone) board members and donors in the community and beyond enriched my life in many ways.
I could probably identify at least ten things in each of the corporations that I will never forget. Truth be told, when you invest your life in a program that resonates with your soul and sense of calling, it all contributes to the person you become.
I'll share a couple or three things with you that I will never forget:
A birth mother who placed a child with us and subsequently placed a newborn sibling to be cared for by the foster family subsequently asked the foster parents if they would adopt her children? When I was a child welfare worker for the state of Texas, from orientation through my entire tenure (17 ½ years), the agency policy was if a foster family ever expresses a desire to adopt the child in care, the child must be immediately moved from the family.
During my tenure with CPS, the policy seemed to run against the grain of prudent judgement. Why wouldn't a foster family be considered if they had developed a relationship with the child? Fifty years later, I'm pleased to report that many foster families are now verified for both foster care and adoption and if the child in their home becomes available for adoption, the foster family with whom the child has bonded is a strong consideration.
As the agency who licensed the foster home where both siblings were subsequently placed, we assisted in the adoption process. I continue to have contact with the adoptive mother. The adoptive father died within a year or two of the adoption.
A second thing that I will never forget is a nine-month-old child placed in the emergency shelter operated by STARRY. The child had been hospitalized from abuse for several weeks. CPS workers telephoned the emergency shelter because they were favorably impressed with our care of children. The child they wanted to place directly from the hospital was in a full body cast. The boyfriend of the child's mother had severely beaten the child.
The level of care this child was going to need greatly exceeded what we were customarily equipped to provide. I asked the shelter supervisor to make sure I was invited to the pre-placement visit with CPS. I also asked that he also invite all the staff that would have responsibility for the care of the child also be present. That was outside the norm, but because of the nature of care this child needed to receive, I wanted the people providing the care to have input in the decision.
A CPS supervisor and worker accompanied the child. They arrived at the shelter before I did. When I arrived, the child was laying on a pillow on the floor. The cps workers were sitting on the floor with him. Our team followed suit.
I will never forget the way this child looked. His eyes looked vacant and listless, and his eyes didn't track individuals who were talking. Before we gave CPS an answer on our willingness to be a resource, we asked that they permit us to go to another room to discuss the child's needs and our perceived ability.
Of those present, there was only one person that felt that the child's needs were beyond our ability. I was the person with the "no" vote. I deferred to the staff who would be providing the care. They proved me wrong.
I stopped by the shelter a week later and could not believe the difference in the child's countenance. There was a sparkle in his eyes, and he was smiling. His eyes tracked to source of sound.
He was in our care for three months. CPS then returned the child to his mother's care. Reportedly, the boyfriend was no longer in the picture. Within weeks, we learned from a CPS worker that the child was back in ICU following abuse.
I will have a difficult time narrowing my answers down to questions provided. I have many memories that I will never forget.
All My Best!
Don
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