Started the New Job

Image by Ed Yourdon via Flickr

So, I have now worked my first two graveyard shifts at the new shelter. Unfortunately, there have not been any kids yet. I imagine that the kids will be hesitant about the shelter for a while. In addition, the holiday season is probably not the best season to try to open a shelter just because there is an abundance of services and charity that cumulates during Christmas time and quickly dissipates as the spirit of giving gives way to our usual greedy consumerist lifestyles. There is the fear that we will betray the kids I guess. To some extent, this is true, not because we want to, but because of state laws. By law, we have to call the police and report any child that wants to spend the night at our facility. Therefore, in a way we have to betray their trust right from the start. This is just one of the many obstacles that we will be facing. I cannot wait to get our first kid though. It is going to be a great moment. I will definitely share it with you. Let me know your thoughts and ideas. What do you think homeless kids need the most? What should be our main goal at Hearts with a Mission?

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Training Training

Image via Wikipedia

So my first day at the juvenile shelter will be on the 26th. From now until then my life is full of training. It is amazing the amount of training and certifications you need to work at any type of social service job. First aid, CPR, bloodborne pathogens, food handlers, suicide, crisis intervention, and procedure training just to start. It is all so worth it though. Low pay, long hours, drama, and heartache are also there. Its those few kids who you get to watch flourish and make a new life for themselves, they are the ones who make it all worth it.

Hearts with a Mission PSA

Hearts with a Mission

Image by Cvalentine via Flickr

So I am pretty sure I got the job!!! I went and did my Bloodborne Pathogens training last week. That class always makes me feel a little queezy, I am not a fan of blood. Going to go take my drug test tomorrow. I am really excited. The shelter opens on the 21st. I feel so bad for the kids who need shelter now. Last week it was reaching below freezing every night. We had sheets of ice on the roads.


Could you imagine sleeping at the park or under and overpass when its that cold. I couldn't imagine sleeping on the streets at all, I am a big chicken. This shelter is so important. I am feel really lucky to be a part of it. If you haven't checked out their website yet you should. http://www.heartswithamission.org/

If you are one of those people who likes to donate to charities for the holidays they have a Target registry where you can buy items needed for the shelter. This is a privately run organization so donations are what is going to open the doors and keep them open.

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CPR

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Well I still haven't heard if I got the job at the juvenile shelter or not. I do want to volunteer regardless if I get the job or not. So I have to be certified in CPR and First Aid either way. I contacted the Red Cross and of course all the classes are either full or a commute from my home. Not to mention the class is 4 hours long and costs almost $40. I have my First Aid until 2011 so I just need to get that darn CPR. I found a website online that does CPR certification, so now I am just waiting to hear from Hearts with a Mission and see if I can do the online course. It would save me a ton of time and actually save me money as well. The online course is good for two years and is half of what the Red Cross charges. There are a few online CPR courses and I listed them here just in case you wanted to get more information. It seems like a much preferable option instead of sitting in for one of those long and boring Red Cross CPR classes.

American Health Care Academy

ProCPR

International CPR Institute

CPRToday

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Ind. teen charged with strangling brother, 10 Boy pleads: ‘Andrew, stop’; 17-year-old then drives to girlfriend's house

Cover of Lord of the Flies, Educational Edition

 Read the story here:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34265939/ns/us_news-crime_and_courts/?gt1=43001

What caught me about this story, was first of all that it is horribly tragic. What made me want to write about it is a quote by one of the prosecutors of the case. "Sometimes people are just evil," Dearborn-Ohio County Prosecutor Aaron Negangard said. "This is an evil child." Its back to the nature vs. nurture. Born evil, can we be born evil or if you don't buy the religious overtones of evil. Can we born to have no inherent morals? Is it civilization that makes us "good." Like Lord of the Flies, would we all be monsters if we weren't controlled by social institutions like family, school, government, religion, etc.?

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Drug Use During Pregnancy and Delinquency

Image via Wikipedia

I had a comment about drug use during pregnancy so I wanted to add this link from the March of Dimes about drug use during pregnancy and the effects on the baby. I will write more on this subject later but I need to get to bed tonight. Great link though so check it out:

http://www.marchofdimes.com/professionals/14332_1169.asp

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