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Photo courtesy of GBCH.
[This is article is from 2014.]
By Editor Becky Watts
Will the Meansville campus of the Georgia Baptist Children’s Home (GBCH) soon become a temporary home for unaccompanied alien minors? This is a question that has been on the minds of many here in Pike County since the story broke on national news about how many illegal alien children were coming across the border into the United States.
The Children’s Home, as it is known here in Pike County, is no stranger to helping children from other countries. The Hope Program was a residential program that the GBCH operated from 1998 through 2005 that served over 800 children from approximately 53 different countries around the world.
Chosen to Provide Housing
When the GBCH was notified on September 4, 2014 that it had been chosen to provide temporary housing for children involved in the border crisis, Dr. James S. Harper, the President/CEO of Georgia Baptist Children’s Homes and Family Ministries, Inc., said the following: “As a Christian caring ministry to children, we believe it is our duty to reach out to any child who may come to our doors in need of hope and healing… We know our previous experience and our staff of dedicated professionals will be able to provide the safety and temporary care these children need without disruption or threat to any of the communities where we serve.”
GBCH began plans to utilize available space on each of the campuses in Palmetto, Meansville and Baxley, Georgia for this program with each campus serving up to 48 “low risk children” and began advertising for 50 specific positions to provide for the needs of the children while they were in the care of GBCH. The advertisement in a Griffin newspaper read as follows: “The Georgia Baptist Children's Homes and Family Ministries, Inc. is hiring for several positions from Director of Services to Direct Care staff to work in our new program with unaccompanied minors. Requirements: HS or GED, minimum age of 21, GA DL, favorable MVR, fingerprint checks. Bilingual preferred, but not required for all positions. List of job openings and online application at www.gbchfm.org."
There was not a specific date for the arrival of the children at that time other than a hope that the beginning of the program would be in 30 to 60 days, and GBCH stressed that this is a federally funded program that would not be supplemented by charitable contributions.
Plans Placed on Hold
However, all of the preparations for incoming children have been put on hold at this time. An official statement was issued by GBCH on yesterday, September 18, 2014, that plans to house these unaccompanied alien children at GBCH facilities have been put on hold. GBCH received notice from the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) in Washington D.C. that the placements of alien children proposed for the agency have been postponed at least until February 2015.
According to the press release, ORR officials cited the decrease in numbers of alien children crossing the borders in recent months and the availability of care facilities in other parts of the country as their reason for this decision.
“Naturally, we are surprised by this latest development,” said CEO Dr. James S. Harper. “Fortunately, we were in the early stages of preparation and have placed the program on hold at this time. We thank God for His watchful hands on our ministry and we will continue to pray for these children who are the victims in this unprecedented crisis.”
Closing
GBCH has provided a safe haven for children for many years in our community. The organization has advised the federal government that it is willing to provide housing for unaccompanied alien minors at this time, but the program has been placed on hold until at least February of 2015. The job postings have already been removed from the GBCH website and those applications that have already been submitted have been processed and will be kept on file in case the program is necessary at a later time. Georgia Baptist Children's Homes has three campus locations in Baxley, Meansville, and Palmetto, Georgia. Click here to find out more about current Georgia Baptist Children's Homes ministries.
Click here to read an earlier story about Georgia Baptist Children's Home.
[Note from the Editor: Pike County Times was not able to obtain a specific number of children who have come into the country illegally and been housed by organizations until their hearing dates but did find that a number of unaccompanied alien minors have been released to sponsors in Georgia. According to the Office of Refugee Resettlement, 1,412 unaccompanied alien minors have been released to sponsors in the state of Georgia. The Office of Refugee Resettlement defines sponsors as "adults who are suitable to provide for the child’s physical and mental well-being and have not engaged in any activity that would indicate a potential risk to the child." Click here for more statistics. One News Now has an article that gives some in depth statistics as well. Click here to read it.]