Shelter workers respond to emotionally, physically abused children_30705

Posted: 3/4/05

Shelter workers respond to
emotionally, physically abused children

By Craig Bird

Baptist Child & Family Services

SAN ANTONIO–They are the first responders to the emotional and physical wreckage of abusive and violent homes. With a maximum of 90 days to do their jobs, the men and women who serve as direct-care workers in emergency shelters for children must deal with the anger, fear and trauma of infants to 17-year-olds forcibly removed from their home.

Workers seek to introduce structure into their lives, closely monitor their behavior to assist in the needs assessment required by the court and try to begin the healing process of ruptured families.

“When a child dies from being beaten or starved to death, the tragedy gets everyone's attention for a while, but the problem isn't anywhere near solved just because the abusive boyfriend or the negligent mother is arrested,” said Toni Garcia, case manager at Baptist Child & Family Services' emergency shelter in San Antonio.

“The other children removed from that home need attention. In the long term, that may mean foster care or residential placement. But for the short term, they need a safe place with compassionate and concerned caregivers while all the pieces get sorted out. That's where we come in. This is a tough job emotionally, spiritually and physically, but it also is tremendously rewarding.”

She didn't always feel that way.

“The first two weeks, I cried almost all night every night because of what I was seeing,” she explained. “It's impossible to imagine what these kids have gone through, and dealing with it every day just broke my heart. My family was telling me I had to quit.”

Mike Mosley, the team leader for the Baptist Child & Family Services boys' shelter in San Antonio, intervened.

“Mike sat me down and talked straight to me. He told me to concentrate on the fact that we were the good guys here; that we were letting these kids get away from their problems to a safe place. Instead of focusing on all the bad things, I needed to remember that they would be worse off if we weren't doing our job.”

Mosley, a retired Army veteran, was just treating the new case manager the way he treats the young boys and teenagers who come into his care.

“It is easy to make the mistake of trying to be their buddy, but they don't need a buddy when they get here. They need a teacher,” he explained.

“You've got to keep yourself low and remember when they act up that they are just kids dealing with some tough times.”

Mosely, who has worked at the shelter six years, agrees it is a tough job.

“The first thing is you better be sure you were sent here by God because sometimes just wanting to do something to help hurting kids is not enough,” he said. “But if it's a calling, God will equip you with the insight and the gifts to be effective.”

The emergency shelter focuses on creating a Christian environment. On Sundays, there is a worship service on campus, and every-other Saturday, a local church comes on campus and provides social activities, Bible studies and praise worship. Wednesday night Bible studies are part of the program, too.

Kathy Openshaw, a nine-year veteran, sees the spiritual component as the most attractive aspect of working at the BCFS shelter.

“I worked for 26 years at a state facility, but I was frustrated because I was not allowed to incorporate spirituality and faith into what I was doing. Here we do that, and I can't tell you how important that is. Many of these kids we get have been abused, and they need faith to heal, and even more faith to be able to forgive those who hurt them so they can get on with their own lives in a whole and healthy way.”

Garcia sends the resident census to Child Protective Services twice a day, so the state always knows if any beds are open. A child will have his or her first hearing within 10 days of being removed from the home, at which time a judge will decide to rescind the removal or to assign the child for assessment.

In the latter case, the child returns to the shelter and begins intensive evaluation, including psychological testing if that is indicated. Detailed daily behavior reports from the shelter staff are key components in deciding what the long-term treatment plan will be. But within 90 days of the removal, the child will be transferred to a long-term placement.

“We are very fortunate, because we have so many services in one location,” Garcia added. “Having both a boys' and a girls' shelter means that siblings get to see each other and can be reassured that they are OK, and because we have an on-campus school, they can see each other there, too.

“If they are returned home but ordered to have intensive family counseling, we have that program on campus. If a child has been sexually abused, we are right next to the center where the child can be examined. If they are already parents themselves, there is another BCFS program that can teach them parenting skills. And, of course, we have our own residential cottages and foster care program, too. It helps create a sense of trust when a child accepts us and then remains as part of the BCFS system; there is a real carryover.”

The reference to parenting classes was not a hypothetical situation.

“We have a 16-year-old with us right now who has a 6-month-old baby,” Garcia said. “She was living with her boyfriend when CPS intervened because her 2-year-old brother was about to starve to death. All nine siblings were removed. She has been separated from her baby, too, for now and is going to be placed in a group home.”

Another current resident, a 16-year-old boy, also is bound for a group home, having overcome emotional problems that caused him to attempt suicide while he was in a juvenile mental facility. Sexually abused by both his mother and another woman who his mother gave him to and beaten by his uncle, he was addicted to several drugs when the state took custody.

“But he has responded well here,” Garcia said. “We think it is a real victory that his assessment plan is for a residential placement instead of returning to the mental facility.”

As the first-responders to childhood trauma, Garcia and her colleagues look for those victories where they can find them.

“Every once in awhile, I get to thinking I've seen it all,” she admitted. “But I quickly find out I haven't seen it all. We get another placement, and I read something else in a case file that breaks my heart for the first time. Then I remind myself that as bad as it is, they are a lot better off here, because of BCFS and Texas Baptists, than they would be in we weren't here doing our jobs. And that makes it all worthwhile–that and seeing them go from angry, frightened children who are actually sad to leave us after a couple of months.”