Pink coat. Old shoes. Puffy eyes.

Sandra Price, mother of two and Crisis Nursery program coordinator, devotes her time this season to bringing something special to this family.

“I love that I work in one of few places that you get lots of hugs when you walk in the door,” Price said. “It’s a safe place. I work every day knowing that if we weren’t here, these kids would be in bad situations.”

The Crisis Nursery is a place of hope for many in St. Charles. Completely funded by donations, this emergency shelter for children offers care for children
up to the age of 12 and gives struggling families a safe haven. A child’s stay can range from a few hours to four days, and after that they are given more long-term care. But even this amount of time can make a big a difference to homeless families, families without money, families living in an abusive home, families with struggling single parents or just families in rough situations.

Struggle. Hurt. Pain.

“Being a mother, it hurts to see any kids suffer,” Price said. “Even if you’re not a mother, it hurts. We just want them to be safe. We care about the parents and families, too. Especially this time of year when we see families who don’t have money to make their kids happy, we just want to let them be kids.”

Tricycles and bicycles line the cozy brick house. That alone is a welcoming sight. And as the door opens, friendly faces welcome and it becomes clear the true purpose of this home: to give children a place to be loved when their families are in need. Just like children in an average home, a boy smiling from ear to ear happily puts together a puzzle, and a tiny infant bounces on the knee of intake counselor Jenny Randall.

“[The children are] fun all the time,” Randall said. “They get to be kids. The best part is when you see their families actually find what they are looking for. They set goals. And to know that we helped them make it is awesome.”

Warmth. Love. Happiness.

Feelings that consume most this season, no matter the race or religion, are feelings that abandon some children in the hardest of times. But still, an infant has a sparkle in her eye and a smile so wide you can see the ridges in her gum that will someday hold teeth.

“It’s so important to make them feel comfortable,” Family Empowerment counselor Jo Stahl said. “We let them have a good time and be kids, because so many times they have to be the adults in the family.”
Children tend to have high expectations this time of year. Whether it’s going caroling and building snowmen with their families, it’s a joyful time. Yet, there are children out there that have to sneak quietly into a bedroom to bandage their abused mother with the fear of being abused themselves. There are children that escape from a home of meth. There are children that find change on the sidewalk and store it in a tin box to save for rent.

“We don’t expect a ‘thank you’ for the things we do for kids in rough times,” Price said. “Coming back is a thank you in itself. Some we see once and then never again, but when they come we know we have their trust, and the children and family alike get very close to direct staff because of the times they spend with them.”

Commitment. Big hearts. Devotion like no other.

Even with families of their own, Price, Randall, and Stahl are three of many who make helping children their tradition. To them, holidays are a time to tuck a child in, knowing they’re sleeping in a bed and not on the street. To hug a child, knowing they’re not alone. To feed and bathe a child, knowing they’re taken care of and safe.

Because of all they do, it can’t always be done alone. They work with the community,
who are depended upon to adopt families this season. They do what’s in their power to leave no family alone who comes for help.

“We become their extended family,” Price said. “We give them meals, have some quiet time, they meet with therapists, and really we just give them the TLC they’re missing.”

It’s the end of the day and they leave the house to return to their real homes. They open the door, walk out into the cold, and look back at the little one in the pink coat, now smiling back.