NACOGDOCHES COUNTY, TX (KTRE) -
There's the Boys Ranch in Nacogdoches County. Soon,
pending licensing approval, there will be a Girls Ranch.
It will be called Cross Bridge Ranch, an
appropriate name considering the facility caters to children in the foster care
system.
An auto and cycle show is setting up now at
Fredonia Hotel for a weekend benefit to help raise money for Cross Bridge.
Casie Strain has turned 14 acres near Martinsville
into a haven for 16 young girls caught in the foster care system.
"I can tell you first hand that they are not
throwaway children," Strain said. "They are worth something."
Strain has an eye in seeing potential in just about
everything, including the deal she found on two well-used FEMA modular homes.
"We just happened to have the money to pay
cash and that was our main goal was to pay cash," Strain said. "We have made a
point to make this as feminine and bright and cheerful as possible. Our goal is
to make this the nicest place they have ever stayed."
The six to 14-year-old girls leave their homes
through no fault of their own. They need lots of guidance, instruction and
love.
"You have to understand their social skills
are inept," Strain said. "They don't understand boundaries."
It's preparation for a move to more conventional
foster homes.
"Put in some heavy supervision and teach the
kids some social skills," Strain said.
Some girls won't receive foster parents or be
adopted. They will have to move when they turn 15, but Strain says it won't be
far.
"This is the future site of the transitional
living," Strain said.
From there, Strain will prepare the girls for the
rest of their lives.
"And start teaching them job skills, the life
skills training," she said.
The mother of three girls of her own and a wife to
a pastor is crossing her own bridge by a leap of faith.
"God called me to do it," Strain said. "That's
all I can say. I'm not the type of person that would normally go out and do
something like this, but I do feel like God called me to do it and I believe in
it and I believe if one person's life can be changed than the whole thing is
worth it."
Hotel Fredonia with the help of several sponsors is
hosting an auto and cycle show tomorrow.
Vintage cars will be displayed inside and out. It's
free and open to the public.
Strain will be there to answer questions about Cross
Bridge Ranch.
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