The More Things Change the More They Remain the Same

In gathering my thoughts to write my first blog entry I found myself thinking about how much has changed and somehow remained the same since 1870 when the 20 or so of the “better” more affluent women of the day formed WCA-Women’s Christian Association and decided they had to do something to relieve “the needy and distressed in this new and struggling city”.  Since the Civil War, Kansas City had gone from a population of 6,000 to more than 30,000 and was full of widows and orphans whose lives had been severely disrupted by the war and an influx of immigrants from countries throughout the world.  The economic times were tough and there were lots of other factors making life in the city full of turmoil and struggles.  There were no social services, government agencies, Social Security or United Way agencies.  These energetic women headed out into each ward of the city to “investigate all cases of distress” visiting homes and persistently finding the support to provide groceries, a doctor or coal to provide heat to a home.  By the end of 1870 they opened the “Working Women’s Home” for destitute and distressed women and their children, regardless of race or ethnicity. As the years passed and more and more children were brought to the home or left at the home, services became more focused on children and orphans, but they also opened the first home for the indigent elderly and by 1900 the property they had developed housed and served both.

Of course many years have transpired and here I am writing a blog entry about Gillis in 2012.  Of course there have been massive changes in the development of large social programs and governmental agencies and technological advances but economic times are still very tough for a large number of “needy and distressed” in Kansas City.  Like the women of WCA we are still looking every day for the practices and interventions that will best meet the needs of the children and families we serve who struggle with abuse, neglect, mental illness, poverty, violence in their communities and any number of traumas and struggles.  Many of the kids live with us or come to the therapeutic school on our beautiful campus but for many more we are going into their homes to provide any number of therapeutic and skill building services.  What is not so different from the late 1800’s is how often we are still seeking the support to provide help to families who need food or clothing or funds for a gas bill or a car repair so they can get to work or assistance with obtaining housing.  And while today we don’t have a large number of affluent volunteer champions like the women of WCA, we do have a large number of dedicated staff who show the same persistence and commitment to helping the needy and distressed children and families in the work they do every day. We are also blessed, like the women of WCA with the support of so many people who serve on our board, or volunteer with the children or help with the campus upkeep or make generous donations so we can carry forward our tremendous legacy and continue to provide for the needy and distressed in our community.                 

Submitted by Gillis CEO/President, Mary Ellen Schaid