I was allowed to take pictures as long as I did not take any of the children.
Dreama and I really enjoyed the opportunity to see this - our "5th Sunday tithing" to them really hit home. Thank you again for your blessings for these children.
Today, Dreama and I were blessed during our trip to the Florida United Methodist Children's Home. We left T.V. around 8:30 this morning. We had a slight detour, but arrived pretty much on time a little after 10:00. We met up with Trista whom I had been communicating with since we started this journey back in May. We were introduced to Miss Kathy who heads up all the on-site Education. We unloaded the car and sorted out the school supplies. They were so appreciative of our love offerings. I was allowed to take pictures as long as I did not take any of the children. Trista provided us with a tour of the area. It was wonderful to see - they have quite a few houses (I think she mentioned about 12 or so) - some are separated by gender and one is a "sibling" house - there is housing for those who will be preparing to leave (16 - 18 year olds) and are beginning to drive, get jobs, etc. They are taught life skills in addition to their academics. Each home is managed separately by the husband and wife / house parents. A nutritionist provides the menus for the next 5 - 6 weeks - the house parents pick up their food at the commissary and the whole house is involved in cooking, table setting, clean up etc. They all have their own chores in the house on a white board - which also included their sleep schedule. The children living in the houses are all ages (except the transitional home) - from age 5 to 15 - just like in a family. We met a house father and one of the residents who was friendly, polite and jovial - he offered to show us his bedroom and he was quite proud of how neat he kept it. We continued our tour - saw a gymnasium including a large pool - saw all the housing - the church - maintenance building - commissary. Trista said there were buildings that housed cosmetology, woodworking, mechanic / car repair, etc. where they could learn skills. She said that they are taken to an outside church once a month so they can experience life "off the compound" (my words). The older children are also encouraged to branch out in preparation for leaving when they become of age. There are about 120 children living there at this time - there are also others who are in foster care or with extended families - all told she said there were about 300 who made up their total.
Dreama and I really enjoyed the opportunity to see this - our "5th Sunday tithing" to them really hit home. Thank you again for your blessings for these children.
6 Comments
Carol
7/25/2014 10:25:41 am
Sounds like they do a fantastic job. Glad we could do something for them.
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Judi
7/25/2014 09:40:56 pm
Carol - YES!!! They appear to do a great job there. They were so grateful AND they LOVED the jump rope, books, puzzles and bag of Beanie Babies - they said they would give them out as incentives.
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Linda
7/26/2014 12:24:44 am
Thank you for the "report" and photos of your visit to the Children's Home! It has alwsys been close to my heart!
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Linda
7/26/2014 10:26:32 pm
I know, right? Especially with our church participating in the 5th Sunday donation I always wanted to see it - it outdid my expectations.
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Peggy
7/27/2014 10:54:49 am
Thank you for the pictures and sharing your love for the home. I love the picture of Jesus with the children. Thank you for providing the opportunity for us to share with them.
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Judi
7/27/2014 10:22:06 pm
Peggy - I had never seen that picture before - I've seen other pictures with Jesus and children, but this one was really beautiful. I'm glad you enjoyed it and the other pictures as well.
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