February 10, 2011

The weather the last two weeks has been extremely challenging – cold, ice, wind, cold, snow, cold, icy fog and more cold. School was closed for five days in two weeks. While our offices are officially closed when school is out, we are never really closed – because children live here! As I checked in on programs during the week, I was in awe of the dedication I witnessed from our staff. I saw numerous examples of why ACH is such a great place for healing: Jeremy playing with 10 kids in the snow even though he had worked long hours to cover for staff unable to make it in;  Stevie, Billy, DeAndre, Teresa, Sharon, Erica and John spending the night on campus just to make sure they would be here for their next shift; Robert saying he wouldn’t be at work if he worked at Starbucks but he braved the bad roads because he knew the kids needed him to be here; Amber, Tammy, Katie, Deirdre and Shawn all independently telling me that they were enjoying having the kids around and having fun in the snow; Tim driving from Duncanville because he wanted to make sure the shelter youth had supervision; Keith volunteering his four wheel drive if we needed supplies; John putting faucet covers on the Waggoner building; Sharon’s home cooked meals to help the shelter youth warm up. It was an amazing display of commitment and compassion during a challenging time. Healing trauma in children occurs in the context of caring and relationships. The ice and snow reminded me how many staff we have who are experts in both.

Wayne Carson, PhD

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