Children’s Home Society celebrates 45 years with dedicated leader

This paid piece is sponsored by Children’s Home Society.

What was happening in 1979?

The top songs included crowd favorite “YMCA” by the Village People. Among the top five TV shows were “MASH” and “Three’s Company” — and not the reruns. The best-selling car was the Oldsmobile Cutlass, which would set you back $5,605. The McDonald’s Happy Meal was introduced in 1979 as well, for just $1.

Also, in 1979, clinical unit supervisor Sue Andrews began working at Black Hills Children’s Home.

“People say to me, ‘You’ve worked here longer than I’ve been alive,’” Andrews said.

“I had been aware of Children’s Home Society for a while, and I came out here and applied for a job between my junior and senior year of college. All they had were part-time hours, and I needed something full time. After I graduated from college, I came out and applied again.”

After a bewildering first day, Andrews wondered if she’d made the right decision. All day she had been thrown into situations with no training or assistance.

“This was what I wanted to do, but after the first couple of hours, I was really thinking, ‘oh my, what have I done here?’” she said,laughing.

But she came back the next day. She returned for the next 16,000-plus days. And she’s still not done.

When Andrews started, Black Hills Children’s Home consisted of two small buildings on the Rockerville site: Tully House and a school, since torn down. “There were only 12 kids in residence,” she said. “Over the years, it grew and grew.”

What else has changed? “Treatment philosophies have changed and evolved over the years,” Andrews said. “Our training is far more in-depth than it used to be.”

“Another thing that’s different is CHS’ support from the community,” she explained. “It’s not only that our treatment program is evolving, but we are evolving as an agency and becoming something that people know about and are aware of. And because of that, we have gained so much community support from the Black Hills area.”

Special memories

Forty-five years of memories covers a lot of ground. Andrews recalls some special times back when staff were able to take children out camping in the Hills.

“Years ago, we would always go on camping trips to Sheridan Lake,” she said. “Our maintenance person and cook had a boat, and it was just so much fun to get kids out. They would be on the boat, they’d go waterskiing, have the campfire at night with s’mores and then everybody getting their tents and going to sleep for the night.”

“That was always fun,” she continued. “And sometimes, just seeing the awe in kids’ faces because they’d never experienced something like that before. You could see that smile emerge. They had to get used to the idea. Then, when they realized what it was, they were like, ‘Hey, this is great! This is really fun!’”

Focusing on what matters most

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the average length of time spent at a job is four years. What has kept Andrews at CHS?

“Just like everyone else, I experience stressors at work,” she said. “But for me, it comes down to two words: the children. The children are here because they need help. And I’m going to do what I can to provide that help.”

Her own childhood was not extravagant, she added.

“It was just a normal childhood. We didn’t go on huge vacations. And so many of the kids here haven’t had that. They haven’t had the simplest things in life growing up. They also haven’t had the bigger things in life growing up.”

“My thought is that if I can share with a kid something that I had as a child that would bring a smile to their face or bring them some calmness in their life, then I’m doing my job.”

“It’s just those simple things sometimes,” Andrews said. “And that’s setting aside the abuse and trauma that they’ve experienced. I think, ‘What’s something I can do for a kid that’s going to help them smile today or help them feel OK about who they are?’”

“Our mission statement has changed over the years, but basically, it’s the same. We’re here to help these children and their families.”

Better or worse?

All of us see more and more news and information about violence and abuse. It’s easy to assume that the world is going straight downhill.

But is that true? Or is it that we just hear about it more today? Andrews has a 45-year-long perspective on this question.

“I think that we are far more aware of how trauma impacts the lives of kids,” she said. “I think it was always there. We just didn’t call it anything.”

“And people didn’t know how to seek help. They didn’t know that they should seek help. It was a ‘don’t tell’ type of thing. Awareness and having resources available for people have grown tremendously.”

Still, “the huge drug issues we have are impacting the lives of kids,” she added. “We’ve got meth all over the place now and other drugs. Poverty has always been there, but it’s becoming more prevalent, I think. And our awareness of poverty and its effects are increasing.”

While some say children today are harder to handle than ever before, Andrews disagrees. “I think back, and there were times we had some really, really tough kids on our campus. I can tell you that back in the mid-’80s, we had kids that were tougher than the ones we have now.”

Looking ahead

CHS is remodeling the previous National American University site in Rapid City to serve as the organization’s western campus. It will house all CHS services in the Black Hills, including residential treatment, foster care and adoption, family engagement services, forensic interviewing and advocacy, outpatient therapy and child abuse prevention. JLG Architects is using trauma-informed design principles as well as input from employees like Andrews to gain insight into how the building will be used.

“As we bring more services under one roof in Rapid City — programs such as family engagement services and outpatient therapy — these are all services that are drastically needed, not only in our community, but everywhere you go,” she said.

“There are children and families struggling, and they need help. And I think Children’s Home is the agency to really make an impact on that need.”