A Child's Haven - 84. Chapter 84

Arriving at the center, Tony looked at me and shrugged his shoulders. The building looked like it was a place that the state had reprocessed. It needed a paint job; some broken windows should have been replaced. We knocked on the door and were greeted by an older woman dressed in a nurse uniform. I introduced myself and Tony; I told her why we were there. Evidently, the state forgot to tell her. Tony immediately contacted the person who requested our help on his phone. I listened as best as I could while I listen to the woman whose name was Betty Damon. “Excuse me, Miss Damon, did you receive a letter from Mr. Charles Stuart of the Education Department?” Miss. Damon shook her head no. Tony continued to talk. “Miss Damon, he said the letter was sent priority mail, and you signed for it.” She tried hard to remember but said she didn’t sign any papers. Tony relayed the message and, after a few minutes, terminated the call.

“Miss Damon, we’d like to inspect this establishment and talk to the kids.”

“Well, I don’t know who you are, so I can’t let you in any way the kids are asleep.”

I looked at Tony. It was 10:30 in the morning. Our kids are in school by now.

“Tony, call Mr. Stuart and explain the situation. Tell him we’ll take the kids to Sanctuary until they straighten out the mess here.” Tony walked to the car, Miss Damon shut the door, and I was left standing in front of the building. Looking over the paperwork, there were supposed to be 47 kids in this facility.

Tony waved me over, “Mr. Charles is sending over the State Police to get us inside. He said that if we find it in the best interest of the kids, he’d like for us to take them to Sanctuary until they straighten out the situation here.” I knew what the situation was going to be. I called Aaron to get a bus ready to join us, and then I called Mario to tell him to get two cases of water and juice on the bus and some food. Don’t ask me how I knew I’d need this, but I had a hunch if the kids were still in bed, they haven’t been fed.

The state police showed up, we identified ourselves, Tony showed them the letter. Officer Strand went to the door and knocked, rather loudly. Miss Damon came to the door. Officer Strand said she had to let us in or they’d arrest her. Grudgingly she let us pass. The first thing we noted was the smell. It reminded me of a sewer. The room was filthy. The kitchen area was worse. When I opened the refrigerator, there was hardly anything there, and the bottle of milk that was there was sour. I was afraid of what I’d find in the bedrooms. I looked at Tony, and I saw disgust written in his look as well. We proceeded to the second floor. The hallway was filthy, and the urine smell was very strong. I was afraid to open one of the bedroom doors. I couldn’t believe what I saw; the kids were tied to their bed. This was criminal. Tony immediately started taking pictures. I immediately started to untie the kids; Tony went downstairs and showed the pictures to Officer Strand. He immediately sent several men to help rescue the kids. Tony got on the phone and order cartons of milk for the kids and soup.

“Tony, take the car to town and buy shorts and t-shirts. These clothes are filthy.” I trusted Tony to get sizes that would fit small kids. Even if they were too big or too small, they would be better than what the kids have now.

We got the kids downstairs; Miss Damon was upset that they were out of bed. I think the youngest was seven, and the oldest was 12. There were two girls and 45 boys. The girls were the youngest. It took Tony about an hour to return with the new clothes, the kids thought it was Christmas, and when the food arrived, they knew it was Christmas. They sat on the porch and ate the food. I hope Aaron had enough food. These kids were starving.

We sat and waited for the Sanctuary bus. It wasn’t too long before we heard the horn. I was never so glad to see anyone as I did Aaron. When the bus pulled up, Aaron wasn’t the only one on the bus. The gang of four were there as well. “Dad, are these kids going to go back with us?”

“Yes, Pat., why don’t you and your friends help these kids on board so we can leave?”

I watched as the boys talked to the kids, and then taking the little girls by the hand, they led them to the bus. I spoke to Aaron as they were getting on the bus. He said he’d make sure that they got fed and a shower when they got home. “Be sure to have Beth or Clair enrolled them and give them a cocoon.”

Tony and I followed the bus home while he talked to Mr. Stuart. He told him what we found, and we were taking the kids to Sanctuary.

“Tony, how could they put that woman in charge of these kids? They obviously never inspected the place. No wonder there was a problem. I’m so glad that Sanctuary has a dedicated staff, and we don’t have to rely on state money.”

We followed the bus into the back of Sanctuary. As soon as the kids got off the bus, several of our kids were there to take them to get a shower. We waited in the dining hall for them to come back upstairs. Mario delayed serving lunch till the new kids came up from the shower. The gang of six took over and began to help the kids through the line. I thought it was cute as the boys helped the little kids to load up their trays. Mario knew how much to put on the tray, telling them that they could come back for more when they finished that. “It looks like the gang of 4 has grown to the gang of six.”

“It wouldn’t surprise me if the gang of six kept growing. These kids have a big heart.”

I looked over our group and was proud of every one of them. They knew pain, and they understood what pain was all about. The feeling of hopelessness and knowing that life won’t be better is a living hell. Today as I looked at them, they have hopes and a future. I was proud of my kids, and I knew what the secret was, total devotion to them with the help of a staff that felt the same way. If something happened to me today, I know that the team I have will continue to be devoted to these kids. And now we have more kids who need a chance and a chance we’ll give them.

We told Mr. Stuart that we would take all of these kids and didn’t need state funding. I think that surprised him. I also told him that he needs to inspect these homes, ensure that the kids are being treated properly, be fed regularly, and have a clean bed to sleep in. Tony sent the pictures he took to him. There was a veiled threat in those pictures. If the same conditions were found in other places and were not improved, then the photos would be sent to the press.