Foster Child Kills Self, Child

I did call Betty Copland, Director of York County Social Services, and she asked her people if Tanya was their foster child. Betty and I stayed on the phone and waite and waited. Finally, she asked me, "What do you think is wrong that I can't even find out my own foster children?"
"I think you're people are spending too much time giving therapy rather than out in the field doing old-fashioned social work, Betty," I replied.
"You may be right."
We waited so long that she finally said,"I'll call you back, Pete."
She never did. Betty's agency had become interested in Salvador Minuchin's structural family therapy and the theory that every child should be returned to his parents in spite of the severity of the abuse or neglect. Of course, the parents would need considerable rehabilitation in many cases before that could safely be done. One of Betty's social workers, Mary Quinn Gunther-Sale had taken a leave of absence to study under Minuchin at the Philadelphia Child Guidance Clinic. When Quinn returned, she began teaching social workers all around Virginia in Minuchin's theory and practice of social work. Betty also sent other social workers up to Philadelphia to learn from the master, and Quinn was awarded The Commissioner's Medal by State Social Services Commissioner Bill Luquehardt for educating the social workers in Virginia. But as a result of this emphasis on family therapy, York County didn't even know who there foster children were (not that the agency would admit that). Eventually, my social worker, Sue Royster, informed me that York County had finally acknowledged that Tanya was their foster child, and had given Sue the name of Tanya's social worker. Sue had talked to the social worker, but she had disregarded Sue's suggestion that Tanya be offerred individual therapy. In retrospect, I should have again contacted Betty Copland and lobbied with her for Tanya to get therapy for disaster struck when Steve told Tanya he did not want to marry her. Tanya slit her wrist, killing her unborn baby and herself. I got to her funeral just as it was breaking up and saw only one York County Social Worker there, Rashid, a supervisor. He gave me a very insolent look as he drove by me, not even bothering to wave.
About a month later, the directors in my region were at lunch after a meeting. Someone said, "I wonder if we should adopt Betty's family therapy at our agencies."
Another director replied, "After all the publicity she's been getting, I don't know if we have any choice."
I knew I was crossing the Rubicon, but I didn't know the fighting would be so dirty and false, but I had to say something for the sake of any more Tanyas: I told them what had happened with Tanya and her child. You could have heard a pin drop at that table. As soon as I finished, everyone left, probably to call either Betty or their agencies to tell them the bomb I had just dropped. Soon I heard that Betty was coming after me using the newspapers. What she did was have her friend, Paula Kreschin,the state regional director, suddenly conduct "studies" of my agency, which was unheard of. We had just gone through a review by the state and passed. It was obvious that the "studies" were going to be highly critical of my agency.As each one was done, it was leaked in full to the media, and it hit the papers, television, and radio. Because of my fear of public speaking and meetings, I folded and said nothing. Like a little lamb, I let them cut my throat without a struggle. If Richard Carter had just called me to his home, I probably could have explained that I was being scapegoated for two deaths that York County and state social services desperately wanted kept a secret.I was comfortable sitting in Carter's den, talking to him man to man. Remember that the Commissioner had just given one of York County social workers a medal. My board felt tremendous pressure to get rid of me and created the lie of disobeying an order not only as a pretext to fire me but to deprive me of unemployment compensation. It was not only a terrible blow, but a low one too.
Two Guns at peternickerson12@yahoo.com