Childhood and holiday wishes fulfilled

I am releasing my weekly blog on Tuesday rather than on Wednesday to coincide with #GivingTuesday, the Tuesday after Thanksgiving. This is a national movement that celebrates being charitable to others and encourages people to give back to others as we embark on the holiday season. On this day of giving, I am hoping you will consider Hillsides as you look for ways to improve the lives of others. During this time of year, Hillsides receives so many holiday wishes to fulfill, not just for the children who reside here, but for the families and youth in need throughout the community. 

Below is the story of Sarah, whose childhood and holiday wishes Hillsides was able to fulfill.   As you read her story, please keep in mind that without your generosity, children like Sarah would often not receive anything for the holidays. While presents can’t fix a lifetime of hardship, they bring joy and comfort, and give children the sense that they are cared for and important.  Most importantly for children like Sarah, these gifts will last well beyond the holidays and create lifetime memories.

Growing up, Sarah never had a real childhood. The oldest of four, she was thrust into the “mom” role at age 10 when her father abandoned the family and her mother went back to work full-time on the evening shift at a local warehouse.  As a result, Sarah was the one making dinner, giving her siblings baths, and changing diapers.
Eventually Sarah’s mom was unable to keep the family together. At age 13, Sarah entered the foster care system. Two years later, when Sarah arrived  to live at a group home at Hillsides, her therapists realized that in some ways, she was mature for her age, but in others, she was at the developmental stage of a young child.  She was desperate for love and for someone to take care of her.     The staff nurtured Sarah by listening to her, validating her feelings, and looking for opportunities to show they cared about her. When she asked for a doll and a miniature tea set for Christmas, they understood her need to connect with a childhood she’d never had. They made sure she received her desired presents.  They also arranged for her to get her first-ever brand- new coat and a stocking – something else she’d never had before.  Amazed by her gifts, Sarah cried because she never thought she would receive so much and feel so loved.

This holiday season  please fulfill the wishes of children and teens, like Sarah, who without your generosity would not receive anything for Christmas.  

Stand for the Silent

May is Anti-Bullying Month; and it has been embraced enthusiastically by the residents of the Canyon Cottage. For many of the children and youth that we serve, not only in the residential program, but also our community-based services, the trauma they have experienced has come not at the hands of adults, but from their peers. They have suffered from taunts and mean-spirited labeling for no other reason than their failure to comply with the expectations of others, which has left them distrustful and weary. The cycle of bullying leaves victims angry and insidiously internalizing how they have been defined.

Bullying is a national epidemic that, more often than we care to admit, leaves its victims emotionally vulnerable and suicidal. In an effort to counter the effects of bullying and give those affected by it a reason to hope that life will improve, organizations like Stand for the Silent have developed initiatives  to assist those who have been bullied, to educate the community to become sensitive to its impact and to promote anti-bullying efforts.

Canyon Cottage residents have had a number of events this month to draw attention to this issue. Earlier in the month they encouraged everyone to wear very colorful clothing on one particular day as a way of indicating support of eliminating bullying in our communities. This week they will be sponsoring a bake sale to support the efforts of Stand for the Silent’s initiatives.

It always impresses me that we are doing something right when children and youth, traumatized by neglect and violence, are able to reject the mantle of victim and take on the role of advocate for themselves and others. This is exactly the kind of effective grassroots advocacy that has a lasting impact and hopefully brings about lasting change for all those involved.

I want to thank the staff who have been so dedicated to these residents and have helped them see beyond their fears and enable them to stand together, no longer silent, but rather strong, vocal and determined to make a difference. Thanks also to Canyon Cottage residents who have led the way with peers and staff alike to help us eliminate the effects of bullying among us.

Support us as we walk along with these young people on a journey that leads them to a restored self-esteem and a conviction that what they do makes a difference…together we are on a path that creates lasting change.