Hire professionals to work at St Jude's

THE EDITOR: Girls suffering from addiction and abuse have had to be removed from their families by the courts and placed at St Jude's Home for Girls.

From now on only certified psychiatrists, psychologists and trained public relation staff should be hired at any TT home for children if we are to succeed in correcting their behaviour before they obtain the legal adult age of 18, when they have to leave to live on their own.

I volunteered part-time from 2002 at St Jude's and witnessed many worrying things. Like when a young nun, asked one day to make a decision on a matter exclaimed, "It always has to be me!" Why was she there?

I saw unqualified supervisors screaming at children, and girls would often leave the classrooms whenever they wanted, with no objection from the teachers. Some even ran away. One girl also burned another's face with a hot iron. I have never seen any nun visit a classroom.

These children have to be taught to take turns cooking all meals served at St Jude's. They have to learn a trade so they can be employed when they leave, and they must also be educated about family planning so they will not add to their burden by having a baby to look after when they are not even capable of looking after themselves.

While I was there the library had no interesting books for the girls to learn about other countries, no true-life stories of successful people, no books about our country's history. no books on sport, adventure or science.

Board games were under lock and key in the main office, instead of being available for the girls. When I questioned this, I was told they stole "the parts."

They need to be taught to be responsible and whoever is found lacking, as a supervisor is with them always, just take away a privilege, like not letting them go on the next social excursion.

I asked some girls what career they hoped to pursue. They wanted to become lawyers, hairdressers, doctors, school teachers. I asked what monthly salary they expected to be paid and then we deducted money for rent, electricity, clothes, bus/taxi fare, food and, hopefully, something little to save each month.

The girls could not believe it when they saw how these deductions left them with very little money each month. But these are life skills they need to be taught.

I also produced coins for them to pay me for a ticket to go on a bus or taxi. These teenagers could not count and were therefore unable to give me correct change. One child tried to keep the coins for herself.

The outside world will take advantage of them if they are not taught life skills so that they will be able, with time, to face the outside world. Therefore, we need to hire qualified professionals and, where possible, get these girls part-time jobs in, for example, a hotel, an office, a beauty parlour, shop or bakery so that when they leave St Jude's they will know how to be punctual and to dress appropriately for work.

None of this was taught at St Jude's in the early 2000s.

PATRICIA BLADES

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