This is an assignment I did for my special education class. We had to watch a video in class and write a one paragraph reflection on it.
As I was watching the documentary Including Samuel I took some notes and wrote down some questions regarding the things that were occurring and how my life might be affected if I ever ended up having to raise a child with a special need. What would go through my mind if I were told that my child had something wrong with him or her? How would I handle the situation? What types of problems would they face growing up? Would they be able to make friends and go to school without being ridiculed? According to the documentary, there’s no way you can truly know how it is to raise a special needs child until the situation hits home. I felt that the video is very informative about what life is like for a child who requires more resources to learn and develop than most other children. It gives you the insurance that there are people out there in the world that really do care about the special needs of these special children.
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Friday, September 3, 2010
Give Them A Home
Greetings everyone! I hope everyone has had a wonderful and relaxing summer. It has been a long time since I have been on here. As you all know, I have been hired as one of the new residential counselor's at St. Joseph Children's Home and might I say, I have had an excellent experience so far. Even though I have only been there for two weeks, I feel that I have gained an extensive amount of knowledge. I look forward to working there for years to come and gaining new experiences. Most of all, I hope that I will have a positive influence on the kids that will last them a lifetime.
As I was shadowing this past Thursday, I learned some startling information that I wish to bring to your attention. You may want to make sure you sit down for this one. In the state of Kentucky 87% of children from facilities like St. Joes are returned back to the state's custody after being adopted. Think about that for a second. The total head count of those children would be far more to count than humanly possible. At least in my mind it would be. It just blows my mind to think that that many children in one state will go without a family to live with this year that will love them, take care of them, and never intentionally try to hurt them.
There are many people that we can place the blame on for this issue (i.e., I am about to insert my opinion. If this offends you in any way, I apolologize. It is not meant to be offensive in any way. This topic is up for debate, so I would love to hear your rebuttal.). First, the biological family and/or the primary legal guardians that put their kids in this position, including parents everywhere, not just in Kentucky. I blame you for not providing a stable and healthy living environment for your children to live in. If you intentionally caused your children any kind of distress, whether long-term or short-term, then shame on you. If you love your child, you would have never once laid a hand on them.
Second, I blame the foster parents because you gave these kids false hope and gave up on them. If you could not handle the kid, it is your fault. You should have educated yourself more thoroughly about the child's history and condition before making the decision of whether or not to adopt him or her. I personally know a few people that have had their hopes shattered many times because they were given a home and then placed right back where they started.
Before I share the last one, I have heard someone place the blame for Kentucky's return rate on the foster care system of the state. I personally believe that they are not to blame at all. I am more prone to blame those residential workers who leave their foster care home because they simply cannot handle working with this population of children. These children are likely to believe that you all left because you did not love them enough to stay and take care of them. I believe, therefore, that it leads them to believe that everyone else outside the system, even foster parents, is the same way. If you are like me and are one of the select few that will not give up on them and will do everything possible to provide a stable, loving, and nurturing HOME for these kids, then good for you! I encourage you to never give up like the others have.
Notice in the last paragraph I wrote the word home in all capital letters. I did that because providing a home for children is the main goal of the foster care system. It is not enough just to give someone who has very little to nothing a house. They need a safe, loving, and nurturing environment that they feel comfortable living in every day. I thank God for giving me the opportunity to be able to do this for these kids and do not plan on leaving until He calls me to pursue a position that will allow me to do even greater things to further His kingdom.
As I was shadowing this past Thursday, I learned some startling information that I wish to bring to your attention. You may want to make sure you sit down for this one. In the state of Kentucky 87% of children from facilities like St. Joes are returned back to the state's custody after being adopted. Think about that for a second. The total head count of those children would be far more to count than humanly possible. At least in my mind it would be. It just blows my mind to think that that many children in one state will go without a family to live with this year that will love them, take care of them, and never intentionally try to hurt them.
There are many people that we can place the blame on for this issue (i.e., I am about to insert my opinion. If this offends you in any way, I apolologize. It is not meant to be offensive in any way. This topic is up for debate, so I would love to hear your rebuttal.). First, the biological family and/or the primary legal guardians that put their kids in this position, including parents everywhere, not just in Kentucky. I blame you for not providing a stable and healthy living environment for your children to live in. If you intentionally caused your children any kind of distress, whether long-term or short-term, then shame on you. If you love your child, you would have never once laid a hand on them.
Second, I blame the foster parents because you gave these kids false hope and gave up on them. If you could not handle the kid, it is your fault. You should have educated yourself more thoroughly about the child's history and condition before making the decision of whether or not to adopt him or her. I personally know a few people that have had their hopes shattered many times because they were given a home and then placed right back where they started.
Before I share the last one, I have heard someone place the blame for Kentucky's return rate on the foster care system of the state. I personally believe that they are not to blame at all. I am more prone to blame those residential workers who leave their foster care home because they simply cannot handle working with this population of children. These children are likely to believe that you all left because you did not love them enough to stay and take care of them. I believe, therefore, that it leads them to believe that everyone else outside the system, even foster parents, is the same way. If you are like me and are one of the select few that will not give up on them and will do everything possible to provide a stable, loving, and nurturing HOME for these kids, then good for you! I encourage you to never give up like the others have.
Notice in the last paragraph I wrote the word home in all capital letters. I did that because providing a home for children is the main goal of the foster care system. It is not enough just to give someone who has very little to nothing a house. They need a safe, loving, and nurturing environment that they feel comfortable living in every day. I thank God for giving me the opportunity to be able to do this for these kids and do not plan on leaving until He calls me to pursue a position that will allow me to do even greater things to further His kingdom.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
09/10/09
Just so everyone knows, I have another blog that I have been using for my internship. Therefore I will not be writing on here for a while. The URL is whitmanbgcinternship.blogspot.com. Thanks.
Your Brother in Christ,
Joey
Your Brother in Christ,
Joey
Friday, July 17, 2009
07/17/09
As most of you may know I have applied for an internship with the Boys and Girls Club (whom I volunteer for). I have spoken with the program director a few times this week. He acted like he was going to call me in for an interview. When we spoke today he mentioned that he hardly ever turns anyone down unless there is a red flag such as a lot of applicants or something like that. Anyways, I am confident that I will get the position. I would like to ask everyone to keep me in your prayers about that. I want to thank those of you who continually pray for me. I have been trying my best to continue down the path that God has laid out for me. I have strived as hard as I can to express the love that he has shown me to you and others within my community which is my goal in life. I want people to see that I have strived to live a Christ-like life.
Your brother in Christ,
Joey
Your brother in Christ,
Joey
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Saturday, June 27, 2009
06/28/09
A few friends of mine are struggling with some issues. I will not go into details about one of them. The other person is having some financial issues which are keeping her from attending college next semester. I am going to make it a point to pray every day that these issues get worked out as soon as possible so that she may resume her college career and do the work that God has intended for her to do. I am asking that everyone prays along with me. I really do want the best for both of them. Thanks.
Your Brother In Christ,
Joey
Your Brother In Christ,
Joey
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