Authors: Catherine Palmer
Giving them hope was Sam’s passion. His mission. He had blown assignments in the past. Made mistakes. Fatal flaws. This time he would not fail.
He stepped into the front office and clapped a hand on Caleb’s back. “How’s the computer, buddy?”
“A pile of junk.” Caleb squinted into the screen as he spoke his familiar refrain.
“Hey, get on the Internet and see if you can dig up a little dirt on somebody for me—her name’s Ana Burns.”
“There’s no modem on this old thing, sir, and I—” Caleb glanced up, saw the woman, and then laughed in embarrassment. “Oh, hey there, Miss Burns.”
“Hello, Caleb.”
“I thought you wanted to talk to Terell.”
“I intended to, but it looks like I’m stuck with Uncle Sam.”
The teen grinned. “Lucky you.”
“By the way,” she addressed Sam as they walked down a short hallway to his personal office. “My name is Anamaria Cecilia Guadalupe Burns, and you won’t dig up any dirt on me. I’m clean. Your dog can vouch for that.”
“Your name…you’re Hispanic?” he asked, pulling the door shut behind him and pointing her to a chair.
She stood statuelike, eyeing the room, her knuckles white on the handle of her purse. Then, moving suddenly, she turned and jerked open the door. With two quick paces, she stepped to the chair and sat, her hips on its edge as though she intended to leap up at any moment.
“I prefer the term
Latina,
” she said, flipping open her reporter’s notebook. “My mother was born and raised in Mexico. My father’s ancestors came from Scotland. I grew up in Brownsville, Texas, graduated from UTB with a degree in English and worked at the
Brownsville Herald
before moving here five months ago.”
“Ah,” he said, taking a seat behind his desk.
“And you?”
“Wyoming.”
“What brought you to St. Louis?”
“Haven.” He straightened a stack of papers, tamping the edges before setting them back on his desk. “I thought this interview was about lead paint.”
“And I thought you wanted a broader story.”
“You don’t need my background for that. Write about the kids. Most live in government-subsidized housing projects. Few have a father in the home. We have a mix of African-American and Caucasian, but we—”
“So I’ve observed.” Her eyebrows lifted like a pair of raven’s wings. “Sorry to interrupt, but would you mind if I asked the questions?”
Sam leaned back in his chair and laced his fingers across his stomach. The lady was a major pain.
“I like your office, by the way,” she said, brown eyes flashing from one side of the small room to the other. Long dark lashes curled up almost to her eyebrows. “Orderly. Neat. But you ought to clean the front area. That pile of wet towels is sprouting mold.”
“Would you like to take over management of our laundry room, Miss Burns?”
“It’s Ana, and the posters are peeling off the walls out there, too. That office is a wreck.”
“We have lead paint in our laundry room,” he informed her. “I can’t let the kids work there anymore, because the paint is peeling even worse than those posters out front. So our towel mass is becoming critical, and we could use an adult to help out.”
“I’m not that into laundry,” she said. “I send most of my clothing to a dry cleaner.”
He sat back and studied her. “Ah. A dry cleaner type.”
“Do you have a problem with dry cleaners?”
“I have a problem with people taking up my valuable time discussing wet towels.”
She picked up her notebook. “When did you meet Terell Roberts?”
“At LSU. We both played basketball there.”
“And then you turned pro?”
“He did. Played for the Magic and the Clippers. I went into the military. Marines.”
“Ah,” she said. “A Marine type.”
He couldn’t hold back a grin. “Not a Marine
type.
A Marine. I brought that training to Haven, because I believed if I could teach discipline and respect, the kids would benefit.”
“So you contributed the military atmosphere, while Terell came up with the seed money to start the operation.”
“Haven is a team effort. We rely on our patrons for funding. Our volunteers add their ideas to make this a better place. Nobody has all the answers to help these kids.”
“So what’s your motivation?”
“Like I said. Helping kids.”
“Really?” She sounded skeptical. “Terell wants to help children, too, I suppose.”
“Yes, he does.”
“Why these kids? And why you?”
He put his head on the padded chair back and closed his eyes. How could he explain the complex and painful reasons why he had sought out Terell Roberts after so many years? How could anyone even begin to understand what had compelled him to spend every last cent he had saved, to work countless hours tearing out old plaster and making the place habitable, to come each morning knowing it might be the last day Haven’s doors would open?
Lifting his head, he gazed at Ana Burns. She sat across from him, her notebook propped up and her pen poised. Her straight shoulders and long neck were held in that regal pose now so familiar to him. But for the first time, he noted a small pendant at her throat. A gold cross set with garnets.
“Your necklace,” he said.
Her hand moved up to touch the cross. “My mother gave it to me on my fifteenth birthday—the
Quinceañero.
It’s a special occasion.”
“It’s a reminder of your family…and your faith?”
“God is important to me.” Her dark eyes pinned him. “Without Him, I wouldn’t exist.”
Stunned at her bluntness, Sam couldn’t respond for a moment. She dropped her focus to her notebook, as if reading over what she had written, but he could see that her eyes weren’t moving.
He let out a breath. “Then maybe you’ll understand this. I started Haven because I believed it was what God wanted me to do.”
She had stopped taking notes and was moving her pen tip around on the paper in a tiny blue circle. “You believe God talked to you?”
“In a way.”
“Is it the same with Terell?”
“Terell is a strong Christian. When we were in college together, he led me to Christ.”
She looked up. “Led you to Christ?”
“To salvation. I’d been raised in a Christian home and had believed in Jesus from early childhood. Terell helped me see that it’s not enough to believe. A person has to commit his life to Christ.”
She wrote something in her notebook. “So, your patrons…you run Haven as a religious organization?”
“We get some financial support from churches, and we maintain Christian principles. But Haven is nondenominational. We’re not-for-profit, and we operate under those governmental regulations. We don’t qualify for any exemptions as a religious group.”
“You’ve met state guidelines in every area except this lead paint situation?”
“As far as I know. They allowed us to go ahead and open, but different agencies keep coming around to inspect. We’re doing our best.”
He stood, the subject touching a sore place in his gut. “The codes, the regulations…the whole thing is difficult. When Terell and I found this building and bought it, we thought we’d just need to clean it and then get the center going. We had big plans for the outside—turning the parking lot into a top-notch basketball court with bleachers and a snack bar, setting up a tennis court, even putting sod down for a park area with picnic tables. But we haven’t had time to start on any of that because of all the work we’ve had to do inside—wiring, plumbing, rehabbing the whole basic structure. We had to widen doorways and enlarge the bathrooms. Had to buy special toilets. Had to put in ramps. Lights. Exit signs. Washer and dryer.”
He moved across the room and began restacking the books on his small shelf. “Don’t get me started on the kitchen,” he continued. “We’re not even close to code there. We’re not certified, so we can’t provide hot meals or homemade refreshments—which was one way we hoped to make a little money. At this point, all we can sell is packaged snacks, popcorn and sodas, and we do that at cost.”
“I had no idea it was so complicated,” she murmured, taking notes. “It sounds like an uphill battle.”
“Battle is the right word for it. Right after we purchased the building, vandals broke into the main level. It was still empty, so they couldn’t find anything to steal. But they smashed out windows, spray-painted walls, demolished toilets. We’ve had to use the bathrooms downstairs, which is a problem for our kids with special needs. Some of our volunteers have offered to build ramps, and those have to meet code. We’ve been working like crazy to fix the restrooms on this level, and we’re nearly there. The punks destroyed nearly all our light fixtures, too, so now we’re working to buy and install new ones.”
“Your military background must be a help. If you see this as a battle, I’m sure you’re determined to win.”
“We’ll win. But there are times I’d almost rather be stranded in an Iraqi sandstorm.” He rubbed the back of his neck, remembering. “Terell and I can handle the kids, and our volunteers will get the building into shape. But we need more of two things we lack. Time and money.”
“If Terell played professional basketball, he must have earned a huge salary.” She frowned, the raven wings drawing closer. “Maybe you could convince the city to give you more time.”
“Terell can tell you about his pro career, if he chooses, but he gave Haven all he had left. He’s a good man. We’re both willing to sacrifice everything for this place, but we can’t live forever without bringing in some income. And we can’t keep the doors open unless we have a solid financial operating base. The trouble is that our donors are reluctant to fork over more money until they’re sure we’re on solid footing with the city, the county, the state and probably the Feds.”
“Makes perfect sense.” She leaned back, relaxing in her chair for the first time since she’d entered his office. “And it explains your reluctance to let me publicize your problems.”
As the light of understanding shone in her eyes for the first time, the knots in Sam’s shoulders loosened a little. He picked up a file from his desk.
“Our donors are mostly individuals or small-business owners,” he explained. “Churches have given us some money, but we don’t have any corporate sponsors. We can’t afford to pay salaries for a fund-raiser and a public relations expert. Basically, it’s up to Terell and me to carve out the time for those things.”
“Doesn’t sound like it’s your cup of tea.”
“We’re both athletes. I’m a soldier.” He dropped the file on his desk. “Nah, it’s not our thing.”
“Mind if I take a look at your donor list?”
“Why?”
“I’d like to take down the names and give some of them a call. If I can get a few good quotes about the vision these people have for Haven, my article might help you drum up additional support.”
He considered her request. “If our donors agree to be interviewed, it’s fine with me. But I don’t want you to publish names without their permission.”
“No problem.” She took the file he handed to her and scanned the list. “This is good. I know some of these people. Isn’t Richard Hayes the CEO of a moving van company?”
“He’s been great. But so far, it’s all been personal donations. He hasn’t involved his business yet, and that’s where the big money is.”
“These are fairly large churches, aren’t they?” she asked, jotting information as she went down the list.
“Sure, but they’re in low-income areas. They send us a lot of volunteer help, but they don’t have much money to give.”
Her finger stopped at a name. “I know this man—Jim Slater. He goes to my church.” She looked up, her face transformed by that radiant smile. “He runs an adoption agency, doesn’t he?”
“It’s called Young Blessings Adoption Services,” he told her. “Jim’s on our board of directors, and he drops by fairly often to help out with the kids. I’m assuming he must be well-off, because he’s done a lot for Haven. He paid for new tile in the bathroom. In fact, I have an appointment with him later this afternoon. To talk about the lead paint problem.”
“I bet he’ll help. I’ve worked with Jim in the church nursery a couple of times. He’s a gentle man, and so good with children. He lost his wife to cancer, you know.”
“I didn’t realize that.”
“Well, this is great.” She looked up from her notebook. “One more thing, Sam. Terell mentioned a problem with DFS.”
Sam shook his head. “Your story’s on lead paint, Miss Burns. That’s all I’m willing to discuss.”
“But why would Family Services be after you?”
“They’re not ‘after’ us. You make it sound like we’re criminals.”
“Are you?”
He scowled. “Of course not. If you work with children and don’t meet your health codes, then DFS starts sniffing. Look, I’ve given you all the time I can, Miss Burns.”
“Ana.” She stood. “So, how’s the little girl in the corner?”
He thought for a moment, picturing the forlorn child who never spoke. “We’ve tried, but we can’t get her involved in our activities. Still, she seems to feel safe with us. She comes every day.”