Letter to the Editor: Gullickson: ‘I encourage Brandon to embrace’ the VOA group home

My name is Brad Gullickson, and I am a realtor and I live in Brandon.  

In 2018, I was tasked to sell a 14-bed assisted living facility in Parker, S.D. Among those that inquired were representatives of Hope Harbor, an organization operating two Children’s Residential Facilities in Marshall and Winona, Minn. This organization specialized in providing services to at-risk teen girls in group living settings.

Residents of the Hope Harbor program commit to an intensive year of living on-site in their program.  They attend full-time school on site, biblical counseling sessions, spiritual growth initiates, life skills training, community service and volunteering opportunities, group skills classes and much more, all provided by Hope Harbor. The kids they serve are typical kids that have experienced mental health challenges, poor decision making, impulsivity, parenting challenges and dysfunctional homes. Kids at Hope Harbor are not court ordered or sentenced by the justice system. 

The idea of a site in Parker came into play for Hope Harbor after over a decade of their taking calls from parents seeking help for their sons. The goal was to acquire the property in Parker and to open their third home there. First, they had to gain support of the Parker community including the property’s neighbors, the school system, local law enforcement, community leaders, city personnel and city residents. 

An informational meeting was set with City representatives, followed a couple of weeks later by a community gathering attended by over 60 Parker area citizens. Hope Harbor started the meeting by explaining their vision and eventually the floor was open for community input.

The family directly across the street shared that while they were initially apprehensive, they had done some soul searching and had decided that they would set aside their fears and that this was something they would support.

A member of the local ministerial association shared that he saw it as a defining moment for the neighborhood and community. 

A member of the school system volunteered to sit on the Hope Harbor Board.

A community member asked if Hope Harbor had opened a bank account locally to facilitate his making a small donation for the cause.

Another participant envisioned that the City might one day erect a sign on the edge of town that would emphasize how the community embraced the opportunity saying “Proud Home of Hope Harbor: We care about people”.

Amazingly, there was not a single discouraging comment. People set their fears aside and stepped up for the greater good. 

Recently, Hope Harbor received a note from that family across the road ... a thank-you to the residents for feeding the neighbor’s chickens while they were away.  

I decided to share this experience after reading the lead story in last week’s Brandon Valley Journal outlining the experience the Volunteers of America (VOA) has had while trying to establish a home here in Brandon. 

VOA is really not much different than Hope Harbor. This is not their first rodeo, and it won’t be their last.  Their model works, their standards are set, and they aren’t going into this blindly. The truth is the people VOA are serving are the same people that are already living and needing healing in our community. This could be the opportunity for our community to be established as a place of healing. I encourage Brandon to embrace that opportunity.

You never know when you might need someone to look after your chickens.

Brad Gullickson

Brandon

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The Brandon Valley Journal

 

The Brandon Valley Journal
1404 E. Cedar St.
Brandon, SD 57005
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