On a chilly day nearly 12 years ago in November 1995, three young girls were brought to the doorstep of St. Jude’s Ranch for Children.  Their mother dropped them off and never came back.

Cathy was 10, Carrie was 8 and Little Sarah was only 5.  All were too young to understand that mom and dad were drug addicts and alcoholics, or why they traveled from motel to motel every night, or why their parents were constantly fighting and being taken away by the police.  They just knew they would never go back to the same place twice.

Cathy, Carrie and Sarah were welcomed at St. Jude’s with open arms.  These precious little girls had nowhere to go and we gave them what they were missing - a safe place to live, plenty of food to eat and, most importantly, kindness, nurturing and love.  We gave these little girls the opportunity to grow and flourish in a caring environment that allowed them to achieve their biggest dreams.

Over time, the girls began to trust and started to share painful and traumatic pieces of their lives that were forgotten for years… and they began to heal.  When 12 years old, Cathy was asked why she wore only dark colored clothing.  She responded, “So I can show my inside on the outside and nobody will know.”  Striking words from a young child, but she spoke of the truth and realities of abused, abandoned and neglected children everywhere. 

Faced with hardships impossible to imagine, Cathy, Carrie and Sarah persevered. Through the unwaivering dedication and support of the trained staff, all three girls caught up in their studies after being nearly two years behind academically.  High school graduation with their peers was an exciting day for Cathy and Carrie, and will soon be a reality for Sarah, as well.

At 17, Sarah is embarking on her last year of high school.  She still lives on the Boulder City campus, now in the Transitional Living program.  She aspires to become a physician and plans for the life she never knew possible.  Like her sisters, she considers the staff at St. Jude’s family and those feelings are reciprocated.  Seeing the youngest of this incredible trio leave the campus for college will be a joyfully heartbreaking day for everyone. 

Carrie, now 20, is beginning life on her own with life skills and advantages she once thought impossible.  Well educated and bright, she often visits the campus to chat with her sister, her friends and others in the St. Jude’s family.

Cathy, now 22, is well on her way to a college degree.  She also works as a Pharmacy Technician and hopes to own her own daycare someday.  She visits Sarah on the Ranch whenever possible and she sees Carrie off campus nearly everyday.  With her own apartment and soaring grades you would never know this young lady whose parents once forgot to send her to school.

St. Jude’s Ranch embodies hope and new lives for these girls.  We gave them a safe place to thrive and a place to create happy childhood memories.  If these girls did not live with us, it is sad to imagine where they might be today.  Cathy put it most frighteningly when she said,” “If it wasn’t for this place I would be beaten and pregnant with lots of kids.  I would be just like my mother.” 

Fortunately, neither Cathy nor her sisters will ever be in that situation. St. Jude’s Ranch taught them how to break that vicious cycle, gave them a safe place to grow and dream, and provided the life skills required to be productive citizens in the community. All three have enthusiastically embraced their new lives.