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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2005 Jan 25 - Cape Cod Times ArticleE & ISLANDS Cage Cod Times ■ A3 — - s__ O s "It's a whole different air a whole different f eelin �gfor the kids. They don't feel like they're coming into an institution." ANITA SINGH, program coordinator KEVIN MINGORA photos/Cape Cod Times The 12 youths, ages 12 to 17, who stay at Cape Cod Adolescent Shelter Care take classes with educational instructor Sharon Powell, above. The South Yarmouth facility is the only youth shelter on Cape Cod. TRANSFORM'ATIO-N- YOUTH SHELTER POLISHES IMAGE By MARC PARRY STAFF WRITER OUTHYARMOUTH — Kathy Felt wants you to forget all that bad stuff that comes to mind when you hear the word shelter. Instead, picture kids mountain -biking down nature trails. Or kayaking. Or visiting the Statehouse. "A warm place to sleep and three square meals a day — we do a lot more than that,"Felt said. Felt runs Cape Cod Adolescent Shelter Care, which is set in a hacienda -like building in Sn1AbVhrmniAh anti is thn only youth shelter on the Cape. The program offers a short-term home to youths ages 12 to 17 from Cape Cod, the islands, Plymouth and Wareham. Its residents are placed there by the state Department of Social Ser- vices, often because of prob- lems such as drug abuse, tru- ancy or aggressive behavior. The shelter accommodates 12 youths, and many come from dysfunctional families. Their stay, an average of 60 ing Prohibition. Legend has it there's an underground tun- nel once used to smuggle alcohol. The RFK agency spent between $80,000 and $100,000 on renovations, installing new windows, knocking down walls and replacing the concrete out back with grass. The old taped -up carpets are gone. So are some of the old rules. Before, Felt said, the residents couldn't keep any personal items in their rooms. They had clothing bins and"hygiene" bins, and both were placed in storage. The staff at Cape Cod Adolescent Shelter Care has tried to change the shelter's image, including allowing the resi- dents to hang pictures to personalize their space and to keep clothing and personal hygiene items with them. days, is a stopgap, a safe place where they can be assessed and where decisions can be made about where they'll go next. The shelter reopened under the management of the Robert E Kennedy Children's Action Corps last March. The RFK agency was one of five groups that vied to run it after the Key Program, manager of the shelter since the early 1990s, asked the Department of Social Services to termi- nate its contract, said Stephen Ryan, DSS director for the Cape and islands area. The Boston -based nonprofit child -welfare agency has given the program a face-lift, both physical and philosophi- cal. The building was never your typical shelter. With a stuc- co exterior and arched patio, it used to be a speakeasy dur- Now, they can keep things with them and personalize the spaces. Like the teen who put up a poster of Al Capone chomping on a stogie. "It's a whole different air, a whole different feeling for the kids,"said Anita Singh, who worked at the shelter when the Key Program ran it and now, under RFK, serves as its program coordinator. "They don't feel like they're coming into an institution." The RFK philosophy is to keep the youths engaged with the community — and busy. Some attend local schools, and some work. The shelter has a room full of high-tech mountain bikes, and the kids go on trips. Not that it's some adventure camp. They're patted down for weapons, drugs and cigarettes when they walk in. And they live a regimented life, with bad behavior punished and good behavior rewarded with privileges such as a trip to the movies. The structure has helped Matt, a 16-year-old with shaggy brown hair and braces, stay off drugs for several months. He used to take "anything I could get my hands on,"but now he goes to Narcotics Anonymous, works at Stop & Shop and gets tutored at the shelter. "This is a much better place than some of the other places I've been in,"he said.