Winston, 7, lives at the Masonic Children’s Home with his sister, Rosie, 10, and he wouldn’t want it any other way.
“It makes things easier,” he said. “I feel better about being here because I have her with me, so I don’t have to do stuff by myself.”
Winston, who has lived at the children’s home for about six months, spends time with his sister at a siblings’ group recently created by social worker Ms. Becca. He also enjoys taking art classes at the Twisted Easel in Elizabethtown, the chance to go to Hersheypark and going out for cheeseburger.
Rosie said she enjoys playing games with Winston, and that he often makes her laugh. “It makes me feel good to have him here,” she said.
Rosie also enjoys art lessons, playing with her best friend, Celine, and participating in dance in town. “I’ve learned how to work hard [at the children’s home] and to use my manners and all that,” she said. “I like all the house parents.”
Winston and Rosie are one of nine pairs of siblings currently living at the children’s home, the most that Executive Director Mark Kurzenknabe has seen in the 20 years he has worked there.
“Some of them [siblings] have been here for a while, other ones are new,” he said. “Some facilities don’t have the capability to keep siblings together or only accept girls or boys, or siblings might get split up in foster care. With us, we can hopefully accommodate everyone if we have room. It’s a big advantage for us.”
“Some of these children have been through a lot to begin with, so it’s a good support system [to have your sibling there]. It can make the adjustment period in a new place a lot easier.”
Jacob, 16, came to the children’s home three years ago and was followed by his sister, Savannah, 16, this past August. They are fraternal twins.
“It’s so nice having my sister here,” Jacob said. “It’s fun to have somebody to do things with and to see her and talk to her every day. We talk about how we’re doing in school and other things.”
Jacob enjoys the house parents and the other children who live with him. “Everyone comforts me when I’m down,” he said. “They support me and treat me nice.”
He enjoys playing basketball and is a member of the swim team at Elizabethtown Area High School.
Savannah hopes to play softball this spring at school. Before moving to the children’s home, she only saw Jacob on breaks from school, of which there were four a year. Now, she sees him almost every day.
“We like playing board games, Xbox, going outside and playing basketball,” she said. “I like talking to him.”
Savannah said she enjoys living at the children’s home because it feels like a community where everyone gets along and cares about each other.
“I’m learning to be more responsible and independent,” she said. “These are skills that will help me when I’m older.”