149 Weldon Pkwy, Suite 115
Maryland Heights, MO
63043-3103
Phone: 314.993.9000 x112
mcrawford@nbacares.org
- Please share the name and address of any Disciples care provider omitted from this web site by e-mailing mcrawford@nbacares.org
You Were There and Made a Difference
There is Light at the End of the Dark Tunnel
“After a divorce there is a period of time after the split that I thought my life would never get better.” Sonia tells our Inman staff with gratitude for the help she has received.
Through her divorce and even before, Sonia never had her family’s support. People always say, “In the end, you can always rely on family.” But that wasn’t the case for Sonia, after her divorce she felt completely alone with her two young boys to care for.
Fighting her depression, looking for a job, and getting evicted for not having the money to sustain her household, Sonia really felt at the lowest of her lows.
But like the saying goes, “It only rains so many days before you can see sunshine again.” Sonia found the strength through her faith and by seeking for help to get back on her feet.
She is a single parent and currently has two boys enrolled here at Inman Christian Center, 11-year-old Roman in the Summer Recreation Program and 4-year-old Raul in Childcare. Sonia received every type of service possible we could offer her, from diapers to clothing and also having a supportive staff to communicate with.
“Here at Inman it’s like we are family.” Sonia states with love. “Not only did you guys provide me with assistance for my kids and me, but you guys also made feel like I was worth something.” A feeling she mentioned she wasn’t too familiar with before.
Sonia is now working, has housing to provide for her and her family, and is an active parent in the community as well as in our center, and just recently became a new member of our board.
She has made a 180 degree turn with her life for the better, and has an amazing personality and such positive outlook on life.
Sonia recently took in her niece, (putting aside family differences) after her niece was taken from her sister by CPS, and is caring for the baby as if she were her own.
“I take my niece in with all the love and care I could give, because aside from my sister’s poor decisions we are still family, and I thank God I was also given the opportunity to give back and help someone, just like how I was helped in my time of need.” Sonia explains to us, as she also plans on enrolling her niece at Inman.
As one of the Disciples Care Network agencies, Inman Christian Center is proud to be part of care and help for more than 48,000 persons a year served in one of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) Care ministries.
We not only provide differentiation of services, but we also treat everybody equal and we make everybody feel as comfortable and accepted as we can make them feel.
Inman Christian Center
Sandra E. Imery, M.S.
Executive Director
simery@inmancenter.org
210.222.9641
www.inmancenter.org
A Homecoming
John moved to Woodhaven in 1969 at age 22. He lived on the Woodhaven campus for 25 years, until national changes in disability services allowed John and others with developmental disabilities to be served in their own community-based homes.
For the next 15 years, John thrived in as an active member of the Columbia, Missouri, community. He continued to receive supported living services from Woodhaven to ensure his success. He spent time with his girlfriend, Margaret, a relationship that began when they both first moved to Woodhaven and continues these 41 years later. He found community employment, working in several restaurants over the years. He joined a church, attended countless local festivals and sporting events, and was a charter member of the Columbia Aktion Club, a community service club for people with developmental disabilities.
This year, John's age and health began requiring more assistance for him than he was getting in his apartment. There was no need to worry – Woodhaven serves people with significant needs too. John moved into Woodhaven's Nifong apartments, which happens to be located on the old campus – though the Columbia community has grown outward to surround the acreage that is left there, eliminating any sense of isolation or institutionalization. There he joined friends he'd known since coming to Woodhaven in 1969. One roommate, Steve, said John moving in was just like having a lifelong friend move home. To which John replied with a smile, "yep."
John is a great example of why it is so vital that you were there and made a difference for Woodhaven. When Woodhaven begins serving someone with developmental disabilities, it is usually a lifetime commitment. The Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) has provided:
the stability to continue helping John, Margaret, Steve and many others to live with dignity across many decades;
the flexibility to meet their changing needs and remain a national leader in providing services for people with developmental disabilities; and
the capability to welcome new people with a variety of challenges to our services, whose families can feel confident that Woodhaven will be there for their loved one for many years to come.
Woodhaven currently helps 112 men and women with developmental disabilities to live in their own homes as active members of the community in central Missouri. Its long history with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) includes being a founding member of the Disciples Care Network.
For more information, please contact:
Jaime Freidrichs, Director of Development
Woodhaven
1405 Hathman Place
Columbia, MO 65201
Phone 573.3876.7326
Email jfreidrichs@woodhaventeam.org
“My Life at Fowler”
A Biography on Betty Hall, 1932 - present
By: Julia Russler
Betty Hall
“All fun, no regrets,” Betty Hall says about spending ten years of her childhood at Juliette Fowler Homes Inc. (JFH) some sixty-six years ago. Now currently living in the Fowler Christian Apartments (FCA) on the JFH campus since 1995, Hall is right back at home.
After experiencing a rough childhood with four siblings, Hall, her sister, and only brother were taken from their home by Child Protective Services. In 1942, Hall started her new life at Juliette Fowler as a ten year old living among 150 other children, ranging from infants to students in high school.
The childhood friends Hall made at JFH for Orphaned and Aged all those years ago come over once a month or so to keep in touch. “The kids and adults working at Fowler that I grew up with were my family,” Hall says. These are lifelong friends. Today, eight of these friends share childhood memories of their life together at JFH as well as catching each other up on their current lives.
Juliette Fowler Homes did not feel like an orphanage to Hall and her buddies. The “matrons” who took care of the delicate youth truly felt like family. Hall and her pals reminisced about horseback riding, learning how to swim in the youth-care swimming pool, and studying for their school classes.
Florence Wright Chapman
Florence Wright Chapman, a childhood friend of Betty’s from JFH also currently living at FCA, spoke about her cherished life. “I always told my children that when I retire and get old that I would return to Juliette Fowler, the place I will always call home. I am very lucky to be here.” Chapman said.
Acknowledging that “kids will be kids,” Hall describes one night when all of the girls and boys sneaked out of their rooms and jumped in the swimming pool on the campus. Each one would slip out of their beds and exit via the fire escape. Evidence of their escape in the way of soaking wet floors resulted in the punishment of extra ironing. There were other adventures the men and women enjoyed remembering, such as their church camp trips to Athens lasting two weeks each summer. The youngsters really bonded and became family during these voyages with each other.
The most important process for a youth living at Juliette Fowler was to mature into an independent person and lead a successful life. Betty Hall did just that. After completing Woodrow Wilson High School and attending college at the University of North Texas in Denton, Hall started living on her own and worked in various offices, ultimately retiring from Pearl Vision as an accounts payable clerk. Sharing about her experiences of mothering three children, Hall could not stop smiling about her wonderful life. Hall concludes, “I am blessed each day for having been at Fowler. I am so fortunate and very happy to be back.”