Emergency meeting regarding youth and drugs progresses

By Ashley McCarty

People’s Defender

Local entities came together again to further discuss the effects of drugs and youth in a follow-up meeting on January 27.

The meeting was arranged by Judge Brett M. Spencer and held in the Common Pleas courtroom.

At the conclusion of the last meeting, held on Nov. 22, 2021, Spencer prompted the attendees to come back with the answer to one question: What if?

“When we were here last, we talked about answering the question, why can’t we or what if we? We need to get proactive [about helping the children]. Last time we gave you some clips. There was a child that tested positive for opiates and methamphetamine at birth. The grandmother has [temporary custody and has] done a great job. There was a case where a mother and father tested positive for methamphetamine. The children were placed into temporary custody. The father is now in outpatient treatment. The child born on the way to the hospital, the mother and child both tested positive for oxycodone, fentanyl, tramadol, amphetamine and methamphetamine, the Children’s Services has temporary custody of all four children. The child with multiple fractures has been granted temporary custody with Children’s Services. We had a [teenager] that didn’t go to school. His mother tested positive for methamphetamines. He’s still not going to school. We’re still trying to figure that out. The children that were living in a shack, Children’s Services has custody of both children,” said Spencer.

The reaction to the plight of Adams County children has been astounding, added Spencer.

I’m getting calls from Tennessee. It’s been amazing. Right after that meeting, Tina Lightcap came in, she talked about LINK Mentoring. Executive Director Angela Richmond of Child and Family Services came in to discuss programs available and to assist children and families. I had a meeting with the Supreme Court of Ohio. They want to talk to us about doing a family dependency treatment court. They’ve contacted us again today. They’re recognizing us. Farmville raised $1,000 for Adams County children. A benefit is planned for later this year. A new vaping grant has been awarded by the Adams County Medical Foundation. We’re also preparing a resource manual. The end result is, this has gotten pretty big. If you go in the jury room, it says this on the wall: “Never doubt that a small group of committed people can change the world, for indeed it is the only thing that ever has.” This little group can change the world. We can change the county. Let’s do it,” said Spencer.

One of the first attendees to speak was Tom Wuest. Wuest and his wife, Karen, have been residents of the county for 10 years.

“I’ve been a soccer coach at West Union High School for the last two years. This autumn, I asked my team what they really loved about where we live, and one thing they wished was different. One overwhelming thing they wished was different was for places of social gathering for young people. A hope of keeping their life in Adams County. I’ve heard great stories about what Adams County used to be. Why can’t we make Adams County the kind of place where people, young people in particular, have hope and have a future and don’t need to go down the road of drugs and addiction? We can begin by having a park. Our basketball team has not one place for them to shoot baskets or gather together. We can do better. Why can’t we?”

His wife echoed the fact that youth are told to get an education and “get out” of Adams County.

“I’m fifth generation. I love this place. I loved growing up here. I’ve seen since I’ve been back a lot of children who have not had that advantage. A lot of it is related to hopelessness. I’m here representing LINK Mentoring. What if we could enable every child to have a close personal relationship with a strong, positive role model? That’s what we’re trying to do,” said Larry Hoop.

Admittedly, it’s been tough to convince people that’s a good idea, he said.

“When we’re talking about not having enough beds for these children – I can’t understand that. My idea is a home [for babies and little kids],” said Susan May. This would be a faith-based home with a family environment.

Amy Rau, preschool director for ACOVSD, is seeing firsthand the effect drugs and COVID-19 are having.

“With preschool and evaluations, I’m seeing firsthand what drugs and COVID-19 is having on our kids. I’m having issues where we qualify 3 to 4-year-olds for services and they’re pulled out of the home. I can’t find them. We’ve got to consider the educational piece. That early intervention is crucial,” said Rau.

That early intervention is crucial, she said.

“What if had a disability category that said drug-induced? I’d like to see a behavior unit or [day treatment]. How can we teach this kid how to be in a classroom? How can we teach [them social skills]? I think we can do it. I’m talking about the severe outlying behaviors. We have a set of twins that were taken out of a home because their parents are addicted to drugs. They’ve been out of the home for two years. In that two years, the twins have been separated, and the little boy is still exhibiting kindergarten behaviors. He’s been in 10 different settings because of behavior, because he’s still acting like that little kid that was separated from his parents. The longest he’s been in a setting is five months. That’s one example,” said Tessy Baker, school psychologist and special education coordinator at MLSD.

Administrator Amy Mason of the Adams County Christian School offered the school gymnasium and playground as a temporary solution to the lack of outlet resources for children.

“Our students are getting life skills, and we have someone who can train parents. There’s a whole group that’s trained in strengthening families, and to date, we’ve not had any trainings because of a lack of involvement. Why can’t we have multiple agencies refer to our parent group for these trainings and to entice parents to come and gain the skills they need to keep their children in the homes? How do we entice people to want to come to learn the skills to better parent their child?” said Director of Exceptional Education Tracy Spires.

Adams County 4-H Local extension office has a 7-week Strengthening Families Program which uses games, activities, videos, and art projects to help parents and their kids better communicate, show respect, and make choices as a family. Similarly, this has garnered a lack of interest despite enticement efforts.

“We need to get to these pregnant moms. Some of these people don’t have support. These people don’t know where to start. If you didn’t have proper parenting, you don’t know how to parent. We need to start with the parents. If you were never taught it, you don’t know it,” said Heather Roush of Adams/Brown Early Headstart.

A lot of kids need stability after school before they go home, chimed in Randy Chandler of GE.

“Churches could really get involved in that. There are a lot of opportunities. I know churches are always saying they want outreach – get involved. [In schools], we need to get back to teaching fundamentals and let the teachers get to know the kids like they used to and be mentors instead of worrying about standardized testing,” said Chandler.

We have to get back to controlling our educational system, he said.

“How do you get more community involvement? When I was young, there was the Sundry Store that would sponsor teams, and the IGA that would sponsor teams. We’ve lost that community network and local ownership. We need that back. We need that community ownership of helping fund. We can have a GoFundMe for someone who wants to put their dog down, but we can’t raise money so a kid can play basketball. That’s sad,” said Tiffany DeMint, ACOVSD board member.

After hearing some of the resources and opinions of attendees, Spencer posed another question: how do we connect them?

“After being in here tonight, my heart is full. There is so much passion in this room. Each committee that we sit on and all these plans being made – we’re all working on a different mission. We all have the same vision. Why can’t we create one strategic map that we all agree we’re going to sit and be a part of creating?” said Director of Behavioral Health Danielle Poe of the Adams County Health Department.

Instead of just talking about it, let’s put it on paper, she said.

“These mentors can’t be afraid of children who come from drug-addicted families, they can’t be afraid who come from broken homes that don’t match the dynamic that they’re used to. I don’t think the majority of the county understands or has any concept of what actually goes on in these courtrooms. I’m petrified of what we’re not seeing. If we want to do something, let’s make a group to go [to these different agencies] and educate them. Don’t be afraid to step forward. If we don’t, we’re just spinning our wheels, ” said Assistant Prosecutor Chrishana Hopkins. We have the ability, we just have to get the drive, she said.

“We can throw [basketball courts] up very quickly. Since the time I’ve been on the Board of Children’s Services, my mission has been to get a new facility. The children that are in Wilson Children’s Home today in 2022, that house was never meant to house those children. [We are in the works to put in a new] 13,000 sq/ft building. It will have 10 rooms for girls, 10 rooms for boys, mental health rooms, medical rooms and a new kitchen. We have the drawings drafted now as we speak. We hear you. You’ll also have five miles of 32, the Winchester Industrial Park, for employment. I just met with a developer this week about buying 100 acres to put new houses in West Union. These are quality homes they want to build. They want to build apartment buildings for people who normally work. We have to be prepared for it,” said Economic and Community Development Director Holly Johnson. We have good things that are coming, she said.

“We sponsor two counties, Brown and Adams. We want to expand to triple. We need your help. I see kids come in with no food and no clothes. Parents that don’t know much about how to parent. In the county, I think we have about 300 homeless people. They’re on the riverbanks, in squatters, in abandoned, and there are children in there. That breaks my heart,” said Director Char Brown of the Adams County Shelter for the Homeless.

Youth Service Coordinator Shane Young of the Adams County Health Department has lived the life the community is concerned about.

“I’ve lived the life of a lot of these kids. I lost my parents to drugs. Brothers in prison. What is one hour a week to help a child in need? A lot of us need to really open our eyes and see what we can provide for these kids,” said Young.

Social Emotional Counselor K-12 Brittany Inman of MLSD spoke on vaping and a new program soon to be implemented.

“We are putting voluntary programs into the school for students who want to stop vaping. It has a 90 percent success rate. That’s going to start in the spring. We have an alternative to suspension, as well. Instead of being suspended for a vape, they can go through this program. The need is so great for mental health in our schools. What if our resources far outweighed our need?” said Inman.

Principal of North Adams Elementary Deirdre Mills spoke passionately about the role schools have had in these concerns.

“Why can’t we be more aware of what all of our efforts are? We are doing everything we can and above. Everyone is trying to work hard, but we need to work smarter together. That takes awareness on all of our parts on what we’re actually doing. It takes everybody. We have mentoring. We have check-in and check-outs with kids. We do the home visits, we’re taking work to kids. We have Chromebooks and hotspots to give them. We can’t get parents there to pick it up. So, we take out to the house. They still don’t do it. When the kid comes back, teachers are staying after school trying to get kids caught up. The pandemic has made it harder and more difficult. We are getting burnt out. We can’t keep kids caught up. At the same time, mental health. If we could build a Walmart and put a doctor’s office at our school, we could just take care of it all. That’s not what education was supposed to be. The needs of our school kids are so great it’s overwhelming us. All of these things are happening in all of our elementary schools. When it comes to caring for our kids, we’re doing that. Every day. Often times I feel like we do so much as schools, and all we get asked to do is more. There’s not enough about what we are doing. I want to build that bridge and that communication. It seems like there is no communication anymore. We have to work together instead of separately,” said Mills.

Another meeting will be held in 60-90 days. As the meeting came to a close, a definitive plan was decided for the next meeting. The next step is solidifying the feedback, creating a map and beginning direction.