A Child's Haven - 86. Chapter 86

Ten years have passed, and there have been many changes. Andy has completed his studies and now holds a doctorate from the university in the city. He still lives in the annex with his life partner and provides Sanctuary with professional services on a need basis. I never could find someone to offer counseling services to the kids. Now it seems I have homegrown my own with Andy.

Jeff is now a lawyer and is practicing as a Junior Partner in Dad’s old firm. He also has a one-bedroom apartment in the annex. He has a girlfriend he met in college who now works in the local hospital and helps Aaron at the clinic. Beth received her Associate Degree in Secretarial Science and works full time at Sanctuary. She preferred to utilize a bedroom on 3-C to a one-bedroom apartment in the annex.

The gang of four are still close friends. Pat and Curly are freshmen at the University; Bubba is a sophomore at the same University. Nick wanted to go back to England for his university education.

Mario and Marie have two children and have moved into a new apartment that has extra bedrooms. Unfortunately, they are not in the annex but are very close.

The boys rescued from the slave operation are in schools, some at the university, and some are in trade schools working part-time in their chosen trade.

Aaron and Diane are married and live in a two-bedroom apartment in the annex. They are expecting their first child later this year.

Mrs. Chester is thinking about retiring as soon as I find a replacement. Adam has decided to return to Sanctuary and works as the head chef while instructing a cooking class in the annex. Adam will never leave Sanctuary. To him, this is home, and he’s the type of guy that can’t be too far away from home. I did encourage him to publish a cookbook, which is doing very well.

Our security team, Murray and O’Shea, are beginning to make retirement plans but have a way to go before they reach retirement age. Their wives continue to teach the girls knitting, crocheting, and embroidery. They’ll always be our friends and are here every morning as usual.

Several girls have turned out to be excellent seamstresses, and a few have found jobs with well-known designers. Two of the girls have opened their dress shop. Some of them have gone on to college. Currently, two are working for us as teachers. And as one would expect, some are married to the boys.

As the kids left Sanctuary, we gave them their share of the trust. Some took the cash, and others asked Tony to set up a trust fund for them. Tony and I were asked to be the trustees of these funds. They all were surprised by the amount of money that they were given from the trust. Tony explained where the money came from and how we set up the trust. In a way, they earned it, but it was not a pleasant experience, and they knew that the hurt and degradation they received, the money could never offset. They were glad to know that the people who had abused them paid for the trust.

With the money from the trust, some of the children that came from Mexico went back. They said that they were determined to invest in Mexico’s future and open businesses that would offer jobs so that people will not be anxious to leave for the US.

Carlos and Maria decided to create a Mexican version of Sanctuary. With their trust money, they bought an old hacienda on the outskirts of Mexico City. Abe helped them to remodel the place into rooms along the walls of the hacienda. Of course, they had to install cocoons. The place was large enough to grow quite a bit of their food, and of course, chickens roamed freely. They did do one thing differently; they had small buses that would drive through the city. If they saw a kid by themselves, they would stop and offer them food and something to drink. During this time, they explained about their Hacienda del Paz. They wrote and told us that they always came back with one or two kids.

Many of the kids have completed college, Ronnie has a business degree, and with Lyle, who also has a business degree, started their own car dealership, Sanctuary Motors. Janet opened a diner, Sanctuary Eats, a couple of the girls started their own women’s clothing store, Fashions by Sanctuary, two boys opened their own barbershop, Sanctuary Trims next door to Sanctuary Hair Saloon operated by two of the girls.

They approached me to help them with a project that became Sanctuary Mall. Abe had to design the whole project. Jimmy opened a craft shop, Sanctuary Crafts. Other kids had a shoe shop, Sanctuary Footwear, a bakery, Cakes by Sanctuary, a clothing store, Clothes by Sanctuary, a book store, Sanctuary Library, and a grocery store, Sanctuary Gardens. The dining court in the mall was similar to the dining hall. I donate the marlin to them as a decoration.

Many of the kids went on for their doctorate degrees in medicine, and some went for an MBA. One of the kids, Davy, came to work for Tony once he received his MBA. Tony was training him to handle the various trust funds.

Amir decided to go and rescue his twin brother. I flew him home with security guards. He returned four weeks later with his brother and five other kids who were working as slaves on that farm. I didn’t ask how that came about. I didn’t want to know.

Sanctuary has never been at the same level as it was after the early years’ major raids. But as Tony predicted, there are still street kids, and Sanctuary is there for them. Most of the children now come from the states that border us. Our governor has asked the state police if they see any kid that appears to need help, to drop them off at Sanctuary. It is unbelievable that even today, ten years after our doors opened, we still have 300 kids. Most are coming from other cities and states. This bears witness to the need for places where the street kids can find a home.

My staff has changed, but not my friends. Tony, Aaron, Mario are still here to give me comfort and advice. I miss the original kids, but mostly that first kid who walked through that door, Pat. When Pat turned 18, he went and changed his name to Williams with my dad’s help. He said I might not be able to adopt him, but he could adopt me.

The kids still take holidays on the island and the SS Sanctuary. But we are not alone, as the Sanctuary alumni take their vacation, it’s usually on the island or the boat. I finally got my way, and I now offer a boat trip with two week camp on the island for the city’s needy children. The police officer who looked out for the two children that came with us on many of our trips was influential in providing us with a list that continues to grow. The ship now sets sail every week. Either with our own Sanctuary kids or the kids recommended by our friend, the police officer. We did contact some of the religious organizations but avoided the cities welfare organizations. I still had a fear of Child Services.

I still have a dream that one-day, Sanctuary will close because there will no longer be street children or men who prey on them, but the last ten years have proven that’s a dream that’ll never be realized. Tony was right, there will always be kids that need Sanctuary, and I intend to be sure that Sanctuary will be there for them. My staff is just as committed.

We did decide to have a family reunion once a year on the island. We have had to expand the buildings on the island to accommodate our returning brethren. It was good to see them and relive their experiences at Sanctuary as we laughed at some of the antics. It is always good to replay the past; it reminds everyone of our goals and aims, and the kids have proven us right.