Unusual circumstance

I was the case manager for two young African American eighteen-year-olds yesterday. They have arrived here to stay with one young man's sister who is in the military. The other young man is his best friend. The forms that have to be filled out to register them and get money into their hands for clothing, school supplies, and personal items are not simple. Of course I want to make sure they are completed correctly.

They arrived early so I had to rush from my university office to the Red Cross office. I made it in record time (about ten minutes if anyone is keeping score). The room we were in was very warm and stuffy. I had to treat them as two seperate households on the record, listing both as staying with the sister. So we have two eighteen-year-olds staying with a young adult sister in a small apartment, both sleeping on the floor. They plan on staying here for their entire senior year at the high school. I got them extra funds for purchasing beds. She has to have a bunk bed because of space. I don't think you can get a good bunk bed for $300.

I was feeling awkward about their history, especially the young man who is staying with his friend and his sister. Did he live with his parents or was he estranged from them and living with his friend? I did my best to get the dang forms filled out and get them on their way. There was a lot of paperwork to complete and everything is supposed to be printed in CAPS. I hate writing in CAPS. Very slow.

I wish I could do the entire intake over again. I was expecting younger teens that were siblings. That would have been much simpler to process. I felt awkward and unprepared and rushed. (Gee, that's what all Red Cross Case Managers face around the country). What some have to deal with is fifty-fold in difficulty compared to what we have dealt with here. We have worked with more than fifty families in this area.

I will be at the Red Cross office when it opens this morning. I'm going to call the big sister and see if they purchased the bunk bed. If not, I'm going to call every furniture store in town to see if I can get them to donate one. We gave them a nice chunk of money but not enough to buy a decent bed and have money left over for clothes and school supplies. I wish I could have given all the money to the older sister. I emphasized that they should work together as a team to use the money they received wisely, including food. She is making a huge sacrifice to feed and house these young men, but as adults, they get the money. I tried to prevent potential conflict and poor feelings without acting as though I thought conflict was inevitable.

When I asked about the reception at school, both young men immediately responded with great relief about the warm reception they have received. I was really happy about that. I'm also glad they have each other to share the challenge. I liked them a lot and will be thinking about them throughout the year.