A Child's Haven - 4. Chapter 4

That evening at dinner, I was getting excited as I told mom and dad about all of the warehouse’s activity. “Brad, you’re going to have to come up with a name. You can’t keep calling it the warehouse.”

“Yes, your right. What do you think I should call it?”

“Why did you take on this project?”

“Because I wanted to provide a haven for the street kids; where they can be fed, sleep safely, and not have to depend on strangers on the city streets.”

“There are other words for a safe place. Maybe you should check them out and select one.”

I thought about that all the next day. I was sitting at a table in the dining hall when I heard the water running. I quickly went to the basement and saw they were testing the showers. Smiling, I went to one of the men, “I think it works great. What do you think?”

“As soon as the electrician installs the heating elements, you should be ready to take a shower.” By the end of the day, the electrician came and asked what temperature I wanted to set the shower water.

“I think a comfortable temperature would be 130 degrees. What do you think?”

“I’ll set one at that temperature, and you can test it and see if it’s ok. I can adjust it either way.”

I went into the basement with him and watched as he set the temperature on the heater. As soon as he turned the water on, the indicator light on the heater came on, and within a few minutes, the water was at temperature. For me, it was a perfect temperature. “I think that’s perfect; what do you think?”

He shook his head as if in agreement and proceeded to set all of the rest at that temperature. One of the carpenter’s men came and asked me where I wanted the lockers. “Where are the lockers?” and was told on the loading dock. Exiting the dining hall, I went to see which lockers arrived. All of the lockers had arrived. I showed him which ones were to go on the right wall as one looked toward the showers and which ones went on the left wall. Two carpenters had just finished building the separation walls and were working on enclosing the area with doors. This made a large private room with the showers on one side and a small toilet area on the opposite side. It took three days to install all the lockers and finish off the toilets and the front of the shower area, which were now called shower rooms.

It took an additional week for all of the basement area equipment to arrive and be installed. At least now I could open the basement and dining hall to the kids. Sleeping was still a problem until the second floor was finished. The cabinets and counter arrived the following week, along with the vending machines. I told my mom that the vending machines had arrived; she took it as part of helping and called several supply houses. She negotiated a supply contract for juices, water, and snacks. I still needed to find a dairy that would deliver milk daily. Dad had said I should put in a walk-in cooler in the basement, and I could store milk as well as any other cold product there. I thought that was a good idea and after contacting suppliers of cold rooms, I ordered one.

The basement was completed to the point where I could offer the kids a chance to shower and possibly have clean clothes. Mom started to bring clothes to be placed in the lockers. She had a permanent black ink marking pen and marked the lockers as to what they contained. I ordered 10 cases of towels, which I sent out to be laundered. That would be the last time. As soon as the commercial laundry is set up, we’ll wash our own towels.

I was pleased to see that the basement was finished and would provide a safe place for the kids to shower and change. I had the electrician install soft lighting directed to the tables and counter area in the dining hall.

The second floor division was coming along quite well. They installed ductwork in the cross beams for conveying air to the room and cocoons. The ceiling of 2B was almost complete, but they still had to lay the floor.

Although the building was not complete and 2A did not have any cubicles installed, the dining hall and the showering rooms were ready. I had a sign made, and one of the carpenters nailed it over the front door, Sanctuary. I was ready to open the doors for the street kids. Thinking that if anyone comes, they’re going to be hungry, I walked to a pizzeria that was one street over. I bought two large meat pizzas and headed back to Sanctuary. On my walk back, a child, maybe 8 or 9, ask if he could have a piece of my pizza. Hunger was in his eyes, “Come with me.” At first, the kid was hesitant. I assured him that there were no strings attached and I had no intention of having sex with him.

As we entered Sanctuary, I steered him toward a table. When he sat down, I opened the pizza, “Go ahead and eat.” The kid looked at me with tears in his eyes, “Thanks.”

Showing him the vending machines, “Go and get something to drink.”

“I have no money”

“You don’t need money; just push the button.”

He looked at me in a strange way but went and returned with a carton of milk. “What’s your name?”

“They call me Pat, but my full name is Samuel Patrick Casey.”

“Ok Pat, my name is Brad Williams. I call this place Sanctuary because I want it to be a safe place for the children who have to live on the street. When you’re finished eating, I’d like to show you around.”

When he had eaten all of the pizza, I couldn’t believe nor figure where he put it. We went on tour. Showing him the showers, he asked if he could take a shower. I nodded in the affirmative and showed him the lockers where I had some clothes. “Pick out a shirt, pants, and socks that’ll fit you, place your old clothes in the hamper, and when I have enough, they’ll be washed. When you are done, come upstairs.”

I cleaned up the dining hall and waited for him to come upstairs. About 20 minutes later, a very clean boy appeared in front of me. “I’m sorry, do I know you?” For the first time, I saw a smile. “If you’re ready, I’ll show you the rest of the place.”

We went to the second floor, where I showed him where the cocoons would be installed. I explained what a cocoon was and that I had planned on having several in this room and the two rooms above.

“Once the room is done, I can sleep here?”

“Yes, you’ll be able to sleep here. You’ll have your cocoon.”

“I like that idea. It beats sleeping in doorways.”

“Is it going to cost anything to eat and sleep here? I don’t have a job.”

“Well, you could help out here. For example, you could do the laundry or keep the dining hall clean. How about going to school?”

“I’d love to go back to school, but I’d need my school records, birth certificate, and a letter of transfer. How would I get that info?”

“Give me some information, and we’ll see what can be done. How about we go and get you a pair of shoes?”

Walking to a small center a couple of streets over from Sanctuary, Pat walked close to me. “What’s the matter?”

“That guy tried to pick me up today, and I ran from him. I’m afraid.”

“You don’t have to be afraid when you’re with me.”

The man in question looked at Pat and made a sneer. “Got yourself a man, you little guttersnipe.”

Pat was going to say something; I placed my hand over his mouth and shook my head no. We kept on walking until I saw a policeman. “There’s a man back there who is trying to pick up Pat with sexual intent.” The guy saw me talking to the policeman and started to walk away. When he looked back and saw the police walking toward him, he ran. Pat just laughed.

The shoe store was one of those discount stores. We bought several pairs of sneakers in different sizes. The clerk wanted to know if I was starting a sports program. “No, but I plan on equipping a lot of kids with shoes.”

“Here’s my phone number. Give me a call with the sizes, and I’ll put some aside for you.” I thought that was very nice of him, thanking him, we left. As we passed a garbage bin, Pat dropped his old shoes, or what was left of them.

On the way back, I told him about Sanctuary. I’ll lock the door at 9:00 and reopen at 7:00. If you come back after 9, ring the bell, and someone will let you in.

“I’ll just walk around for a while, and then I’ll be back if that is ok?” “Sure”

He left with a bottle of water, smiling. About 2 hours later, the door opened, and a boy, I’d guess to be 16, entered with a girl who looked like she was 14. They asked if they could come in, they met a kid who told them if they wanted something to eat and a place to sleep, to come here. Showing them where to sit, I asked them their names and if they were hungry. Of course, the answer was yes. “While I order something for you to eat, would you like to take a shower?”

“You’re not going to try anything creepy are you?”

“No, I’ll show you where you can shower, and I may have some clothes to fit you as well.”

I took them downstairs, showed the young man the boy’s shower and the young girl the girl’s shower. I gave them each a towel, showed them where to put the towel when they finished, and to pick out any clothing they wanted from the marked lockers. “If you want to keep the clothes you have, put them with the towels, and they’ll be washed for you. When you are done, come upstairs for something to eat.”