So many
adolescents are living on Orange County streets and malls that "we could
have 1,000 beds and fill them up," said the director of one of the
county's shelters for runaways, truants and incorrigibles.
As it is,
the county's three dozen beds for juvenile runaways are almost always filled at
shelters such as Amparo Youth Shelter or Odyssey, both in Garden Grove, and
Casa de Bienvenidos in Los Alamitos.
"More
and more kids are running away at earlier ages," said J. L.
Radford-Williard, Amparo director. "Some kids are unwilling to go to a
shelter."
But most
parents, however frustrated, want to stay involved, said Greg Bodenhamer,
director of Back in Control, an Orange-based program that teaches parenting
techniques for difficult children. "A lot of parents do get burned out
temporarily and just need a rest," he said.
The Back in
Control program trains parents to:
- Supervise
their children. Parents should know where their children are going and with
whom before they leave the house, he said. "If they can't be trusted not
to run, do drugs, they don't get out of the house until they earn that
trust."
-
Discipline their children. Parents should develop a consistent family life with
regular routines and chores. They should make sure children go to bed and get
up on time and make their beds, with the goal of instilling habits.
- Track
them down when they run away. Parents should keep a list of names, addresses
and phone numbers of friends. Friends should be approached with concern and
worry, not hostility, he said. Adults harboring runaway children should be
notified they may be subject to arrest for contributing to the delinquency of a
minor.
- Keep
their children in school. School officials should be asked to notify the
parents the same day if the children skip class. "If the girl cuts, we
recommend mom walk her from class to class. Ninety-five per cent only have to
go one time."
Source: http://articles.latimes.com/1987-11-15/local/me-20987_1_training-program
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