Angie

[Angie]

Since July 2001, I have been a mom. Our moves became more frequent and having our 2nd child made us both realize that me being home with the kids was the best option for our family.

For 10 years before being a mom I was a Social Worker. Fresh out of Tulane (and "fresh off the boat" the Hawaiians would say), I was fortunate to land my 1st social work job in '92 at an alternative school for at-risk teens in Hawaii where I worked for several yrs. It was an honor to be accepted into their culture. I learned so much from them. I mostly did individual/family/group therapy focusing mostly on sexual abuse/self-esteem/anger management issues. Hawaii earned a very special place in my heart.

After leaving Hawaii, I took a year off following the sudden death of my mother. We lived in the desert in AZ for 6 months then off to Melbourne, FL, where I worked for several years with SED ("severely emotionally disturbed") children. I worked for a private agency as a therapist placed within the public school system with targeted children and their families. Lots of home visits.

Then, off to Tampa we went and I landed a job with USF in the Dept of Aging combined with the Memory Disorder Clinic where I conducted initial assessments of patients presenting with memory problems....eventually getting diagnosed by the docs with Alzheimer's Disease and other dementia related disorders. It was a pleasure to work with the older folks, but very sad when their spouse of 50+ yrs has forgotten them. I did not last long in that job mostly due to lack of excitement and not many happy endings. Someone has to do it, but it ain't me. It took 4 months for me to take another job. This time in a private agency working with families/individuals/groups with any sort of issue under the sun...mostly depression/anxiety/sexual/domestic abuse. I was fortunate to be able to work along with the local domestic violence shelter doing therapeutic groups with kids who live in a violent home. I got laid off just before giving birth to Kyle, so I took a year off here.

Are you bored yet?

After several yrs in Tampa, we left for NC for 10 short months where I joined the work world again. I felt like a mom pretending to be a social worker. I worked in the Adult Unit at Butner State Psychiatric Hospital. It was fast-paced and the caseload was large, but I worked closely with a team of psychiatrists and I learned so much from them. I had never worked this closely with adults with severe psychiatric issues, so it was the experience of my career and I loved it!

Then, off we went to DC for 11 months, where I worked in 2 group homes for teens. This was my first exposure to the foster care system. For teens in foster care the road is long. They rarely, if ever, get adopted. For 11 long months, I had my share of angry and depressed teens running away, harming themselves or threatening to harm themselves or others in all hours of the night. My beeper became my enemy and I never want to do it again. I guess making the decision to be a stay at home mom after this job was an easy one! This is where I had Anna.

Then there were all the odd jobs after high school and in college....in the 2nd half of our Sr. year I took the "half day plan" and I worked at National Video (with Robin!) then transferred to the Hammond store for a short time. I worked at a "talent agency" in Hammond booking acts for events and being the "balloon delivery girl" in the 95 degree summer heat...this is where my hate for balloons began! Not to mention people would often think I was delivering more than just balloons...no song and dance was involved! I also worked in the SLU Psych Department running experiments/subjects/doing stats on social psychology studies. Then, while I was at Tulane I worked as a hostess at Uptown Square at Vita's Cafe until my fieldwork began at DePaul Hosp.

So! That is my long, colorful worklife history and how I brought home the bacon. I have had jobs that I loved and seriously disliked, but I can always say that my learning experiences have been priceless at each job and I am glad I did it. There are no regrets and I would do it all again...even the group home job!

[Brenda Robinson Jenkins]

Sorry to hear about the loss of your mom. That must have been terribly difficult for you.