Published: Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Short-term sanctuary opening for kids in dire need
New shelter to house kids while they wait for a foster family
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Mark Mulligan / The Herald
Mary and Todd McNeal, who have been foster parents for six years, are working with South Everett Foursquare Church to open an emergency shelter for children taken from their homes. They plan to open the shelter in early November.
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Donated furniture fills part of the children’s shelter at South Everett Foursquare Church. The church remodeled two rooms for the shelter.
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Mark Mulligan / The Herald
Mary McNeal sorts through donated childrens clothes.
When children are removed from a home by police or state social workers, it's often during a time of family crisis.
“The children we pick up are often abused, neglected and traumatized,” said Mary Hughes, a supervisor overseeing child and family issues for the state Department of Social and Health Services.
Social workers can get calls in the middle of the night to come pick up the children, but there are few options on the next step — where they can be cared for.
Sometimes all social workers can do is drive around with the kids in their car, calling foster parents, hoping that someone will take them in.
Two Mill Creek-area foster parents, Todd and Mary McNeal, working with the South Everett Foursquare Church, want to help fill this need. They plan to open Safe Place, a temporary shelter for foster children, beginning early next month.
Initially, it will only be open on weekends, caring for up to five children, from infants to age 12. Older children will be accepted if they have younger siblings.
The kids can stay at the shelter for up to 23 hours while social workers look for a temporary place for the children to call home.
“The reason we picked the weekend (to be open) is that it's a lot more of a crisis situation,” Todd McNeal said. “What we want to do is assist social workers. They have such a tough job.”
McNeal said he and his wife have received calls from social workers desperate to find temporary homes for children. “They'll say, ‘Can you just take them overnight?' ”
Sometimes, the children have lice or scabies, he said. “A lot of times their belongings get put into a black plastic garbage bag or maybe a school backpack,” he said.
“Part of our job is to educate. People don't realize the level of abuse and neglect. … What we're doing is pretty simple — taking care of kids.”
From July through September of this year, social workers investigated serious safety issues involving 91 children in Snohomish County, involving problems such as abuse and neglect. Many of these children were at least temporarily removed from their homes, said Kristen Jacobson, a DSHS supervisor.
The application to open the emergency respite center is now being reviewed by the state. Once approved, Safe Place will be staffed by foster parents volunteering for eight-hour shifts.
When a child is brought to the shelter, a nurse practitioner will check to see if they need follow-up medical care, McNeal said.
No state money is being accepted for the shelter. Instead, the church is relying on donations. Some have come from area churches, others from people who have heard about their project and want to help.
McNeal said he prefers not to take government money. “We want the community to care for the kids,” he said.
The church has remodeled two rooms as temporary living quarters for the children. The living room has a place for kids to play, read and watch movies. The bedroom, with two bunk beds, is decorated with teddy bears.
The shelter will be one of three offering short-term care to foster children in Washington. The others are in Spokane and southeast Washington, said Sherry Hill, a DSHS spokeswoman.
McNeal and his wife have been licensed foster parents since March 2005. In addition to their own three children, they have adopted one foster child, become guardians for a nephew and “we've fostered a couple dozen kids,” McNeal said.
The need for both foster care and a shelter like Safe Place became almost immediately apparent after the Rev. Joseph Fehlen arrived at South Everett Foursquare Church about three years ago. The church was told that 35 kids had been removed from their homes in the Casino Road area, he said.
The congregation began recruiting foster families. Fehlen and his wife, Christy, also signed up.
“We're under a 100-person church and we have five foster families,” he said.
Eventually, the church and the McNeals hope to expand Safe Place to care for children up to age 18 and have the McNeals working as paid staff, he said.
“What Safe Place offers is a place where the children can go where there's a living room environment, there are showers, beds if they need to nap, and clothing to change into… trying to get the child comfortable,” Jacobson said.
The state will never have enough resources to meet all the needs of children temporarily removed from their homes, Hughes said.
“We absolutely need a facility like this,” she said. “For them to be in a place like Safe Place, a home environment, it can reduce the trauma the child is going through.”
Sharon Salyer: 425-339-3486 or salyer@heraldnet.com
For more information on becoming a foster parent, go to the Department of Social and Health Services website, www.dshs.wa.gov/ca/fosterparents/preservice.asp
For more information about Hand in Hand, the organization that plans to open a temporary shelter for foster children in south Everett next month, go to handinhandkids.org, e-mail info@handinhandkids.org or call 206-497-9762.
“The children we pick up are often abused, neglected and traumatized,” said Mary Hughes, a supervisor overseeing child and family issues for the state Department of Social and Health Services.
Social workers can get calls in the middle of the night to come pick up the children, but there are few options on the next step — where they can be cared for.
Sometimes all social workers can do is drive around with the kids in their car, calling foster parents, hoping that someone will take them in.
Two Mill Creek-area foster parents, Todd and Mary McNeal, working with the South Everett Foursquare Church, want to help fill this need. They plan to open Safe Place, a temporary shelter for foster children, beginning early next month.
Initially, it will only be open on weekends, caring for up to five children, from infants to age 12. Older children will be accepted if they have younger siblings.
The kids can stay at the shelter for up to 23 hours while social workers look for a temporary place for the children to call home.
“The reason we picked the weekend (to be open) is that it's a lot more of a crisis situation,” Todd McNeal said. “What we want to do is assist social workers. They have such a tough job.”
McNeal said he and his wife have received calls from social workers desperate to find temporary homes for children. “They'll say, ‘Can you just take them overnight?' ”
Sometimes, the children have lice or scabies, he said. “A lot of times their belongings get put into a black plastic garbage bag or maybe a school backpack,” he said.
“Part of our job is to educate. People don't realize the level of abuse and neglect. … What we're doing is pretty simple — taking care of kids.”
From July through September of this year, social workers investigated serious safety issues involving 91 children in Snohomish County, involving problems such as abuse and neglect. Many of these children were at least temporarily removed from their homes, said Kristen Jacobson, a DSHS supervisor.
The application to open the emergency respite center is now being reviewed by the state. Once approved, Safe Place will be staffed by foster parents volunteering for eight-hour shifts.
When a child is brought to the shelter, a nurse practitioner will check to see if they need follow-up medical care, McNeal said.
No state money is being accepted for the shelter. Instead, the church is relying on donations. Some have come from area churches, others from people who have heard about their project and want to help.
McNeal said he prefers not to take government money. “We want the community to care for the kids,” he said.
The church has remodeled two rooms as temporary living quarters for the children. The living room has a place for kids to play, read and watch movies. The bedroom, with two bunk beds, is decorated with teddy bears.
The shelter will be one of three offering short-term care to foster children in Washington. The others are in Spokane and southeast Washington, said Sherry Hill, a DSHS spokeswoman.
McNeal and his wife have been licensed foster parents since March 2005. In addition to their own three children, they have adopted one foster child, become guardians for a nephew and “we've fostered a couple dozen kids,” McNeal said.
The need for both foster care and a shelter like Safe Place became almost immediately apparent after the Rev. Joseph Fehlen arrived at South Everett Foursquare Church about three years ago. The church was told that 35 kids had been removed from their homes in the Casino Road area, he said.
The congregation began recruiting foster families. Fehlen and his wife, Christy, also signed up.
“We're under a 100-person church and we have five foster families,” he said.
Eventually, the church and the McNeals hope to expand Safe Place to care for children up to age 18 and have the McNeals working as paid staff, he said.
“What Safe Place offers is a place where the children can go where there's a living room environment, there are showers, beds if they need to nap, and clothing to change into… trying to get the child comfortable,” Jacobson said.
The state will never have enough resources to meet all the needs of children temporarily removed from their homes, Hughes said.
“We absolutely need a facility like this,” she said. “For them to be in a place like Safe Place, a home environment, it can reduce the trauma the child is going through.”
Sharon Salyer: 425-339-3486 or salyer@heraldnet.com
For more information on becoming a foster parent, go to the Department of Social and Health Services website, www.dshs.wa.gov/ca/fosterparents/preservice.asp
For more information about Hand in Hand, the organization that plans to open a temporary shelter for foster children in south Everett next month, go to handinhandkids.org, e-mail info@handinhandkids.org or call 206-497-9762.
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