Miss-Delectable
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http://www.wilsondaily.com/Wil_region/Local_News/315588713435633.php
Geraldine Griffen White knows what it's like to meet bitter, angry children who've lost hope in life and themselves
For the past 10 years, White has opened her home to troubled children sent to her through a therapeutic foster-parenting agency.
So far, she's parented 10 foster children, sometimes two or three at a time, and watched all but one overcome the obstacles life offered.
"Every child that has come into my home has left with self-esteem, a desire to go higher and to be the best," White said. "They have a sense of pride. They want to make me proud.
"Every child that has come into my home refuses to call me Miss Geraldine, they insist on calling me Mom."
White, 53, became a therapeutic foster parent in 1996 after realizing that abandoned, neglected and troubled children needed someone to care.
After working in a 22-year career as a licensed practical nurse, White returned to college and earned a behavior specialist certificate in 1994 from East Carolina University.
Then, she started working as a behavior specialist and dorm supervisor at the N.C. School for the Deaf. Sometimes, she would meet children in the school who were unloved, left behind or forgotten by family members because of hearing difficulties or other problems.
"When I started work at the School for the Deaf, that's when I became interested in children beyond my own," she said. "My heart went out to children that were abandoned, left, dropped off and not cared about. I felt that I could make a difference."
It was also at the school that White started looking for new ways she could help troubled children. She started volunteering as a mentor for agencies that referred children to her from the Wilson, Rocky Mount and Raleigh areas.
But as time passed, she sought a more active role in children's lives. That's when she applied to become a therapeutic foster parent, which requires training and licensure by the state.
At first, she worked with an agency based in Durham and now receives referrals from Carolina Choice in Wilson. White is now serving as the foster parent to two teenage girls.
Therapeutic foster parenting is designed specifically for children with certain special needs or problems. The parenting role foster parents provide is meant to be therapeutic with specific goals for the child. It's a more intense program that targets certain problems or issues with desired results.
Therapeutic foster parents are trained to work with children who have faced a variety of problems, including physical and sexual abuse, abandonment and neglect.
Training includes therapeutic techniques that help parents guide children who are angry, violent and hurt. Some of the training can include role playing, diffusion, redirecting and intervention techniques.
White believes her greatest successes, however, have come through prayer and talking with the children.
"When you communicate with a child, it does wonders," White said. "None of this would be possible without the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the one who gave me a special gift to do this to make these kids feel safe, special, loved and to make them feel their self-worth is more than life handed them."
Dr. Immacula St. Louis, a pediatrician at the Wilson Community Health Center, has seen the impact White has had as a foster parent on one of the girls now under White's care.
"As a medical doctor, I am in awe of Ms. White's healing touch," St. Louis said. "She was able to nurture and love this precious child back from the brink of despair and self-destructive behavior in a short period of time."
St. Louis said the child used to be bitter and deeply hurt by the loss of her grandmother. The teen was placed in 15 foster homes and went from being an honor student to expelled from school.
That has all changed, as the young girl now is filled with hope, joy, peace and self-confidence, St. Louis said.
"As providers working with children who have been abandoned, neglected and abused, we are all well aware of the complexity involved in caring for these wounded souls," St. Louis said.
"Happy endings are rare, and when they do occur, it should be celebrated, and credit should be given where credit is due."
In addition to being a therapeutic foster parent, White is the founder and pastor of the House of Praise and Deliverance, 5118 White Oak Loop Road.
Geraldine Griffen White
Born: July 8, 1953, Wilson
Family: Husband, seven children and 15 grandchildren
Education: Licensed practical nurse, 1973, Wilson Technical Community College; earned a behavior specialist certificate, 1994, East Carolina University.
Career: Worked as an LPN for 22 years; dorm supervisor and behavior specialist at the N.C. School for the Deaf, from 1995-2000; therapeutic foster parent since 1996; founder and pastor of House of Praise and Deliverance.
Geraldine Griffen White knows what it's like to meet bitter, angry children who've lost hope in life and themselves
For the past 10 years, White has opened her home to troubled children sent to her through a therapeutic foster-parenting agency.
So far, she's parented 10 foster children, sometimes two or three at a time, and watched all but one overcome the obstacles life offered.
"Every child that has come into my home has left with self-esteem, a desire to go higher and to be the best," White said. "They have a sense of pride. They want to make me proud.
"Every child that has come into my home refuses to call me Miss Geraldine, they insist on calling me Mom."
White, 53, became a therapeutic foster parent in 1996 after realizing that abandoned, neglected and troubled children needed someone to care.
After working in a 22-year career as a licensed practical nurse, White returned to college and earned a behavior specialist certificate in 1994 from East Carolina University.
Then, she started working as a behavior specialist and dorm supervisor at the N.C. School for the Deaf. Sometimes, she would meet children in the school who were unloved, left behind or forgotten by family members because of hearing difficulties or other problems.
"When I started work at the School for the Deaf, that's when I became interested in children beyond my own," she said. "My heart went out to children that were abandoned, left, dropped off and not cared about. I felt that I could make a difference."
It was also at the school that White started looking for new ways she could help troubled children. She started volunteering as a mentor for agencies that referred children to her from the Wilson, Rocky Mount and Raleigh areas.
But as time passed, she sought a more active role in children's lives. That's when she applied to become a therapeutic foster parent, which requires training and licensure by the state.
At first, she worked with an agency based in Durham and now receives referrals from Carolina Choice in Wilson. White is now serving as the foster parent to two teenage girls.
Therapeutic foster parenting is designed specifically for children with certain special needs or problems. The parenting role foster parents provide is meant to be therapeutic with specific goals for the child. It's a more intense program that targets certain problems or issues with desired results.
Therapeutic foster parents are trained to work with children who have faced a variety of problems, including physical and sexual abuse, abandonment and neglect.
Training includes therapeutic techniques that help parents guide children who are angry, violent and hurt. Some of the training can include role playing, diffusion, redirecting and intervention techniques.
White believes her greatest successes, however, have come through prayer and talking with the children.
"When you communicate with a child, it does wonders," White said. "None of this would be possible without the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the one who gave me a special gift to do this to make these kids feel safe, special, loved and to make them feel their self-worth is more than life handed them."
Dr. Immacula St. Louis, a pediatrician at the Wilson Community Health Center, has seen the impact White has had as a foster parent on one of the girls now under White's care.
"As a medical doctor, I am in awe of Ms. White's healing touch," St. Louis said. "She was able to nurture and love this precious child back from the brink of despair and self-destructive behavior in a short period of time."
St. Louis said the child used to be bitter and deeply hurt by the loss of her grandmother. The teen was placed in 15 foster homes and went from being an honor student to expelled from school.
That has all changed, as the young girl now is filled with hope, joy, peace and self-confidence, St. Louis said.
"As providers working with children who have been abandoned, neglected and abused, we are all well aware of the complexity involved in caring for these wounded souls," St. Louis said.
"Happy endings are rare, and when they do occur, it should be celebrated, and credit should be given where credit is due."
In addition to being a therapeutic foster parent, White is the founder and pastor of the House of Praise and Deliverance, 5118 White Oak Loop Road.
Geraldine Griffen White
Born: July 8, 1953, Wilson
Family: Husband, seven children and 15 grandchildren
Education: Licensed practical nurse, 1973, Wilson Technical Community College; earned a behavior specialist certificate, 1994, East Carolina University.
Career: Worked as an LPN for 22 years; dorm supervisor and behavior specialist at the N.C. School for the Deaf, from 1995-2000; therapeutic foster parent since 1996; founder and pastor of House of Praise and Deliverance.