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T 3 Hebrew Orphans’ Home Activities of 1931
The Following Resume Was Given by Mrs. Armand Wyle
at the Yearly Board Meeting
T T K have been so intensely occupied
Y'\ w ith the promotion of our newest
* * plan of foster home placement for
whose home life has been un-
1 Mv interrupted, that 1 would like at
this meeting, to revert to your old, though
still unique policy of subsidizing children
, n then own homes. After all, we must
nut forget that most of our children (about
two-thirds) are thus cared for, and the
tendency today seems to be to adhere to this
highly preferable method of child-care and
use i substitute family home only when
the child’s natural home and protection
cannot possibly be retained.
In discussing this subject, 1 wish to say
that this type of work of preventing the
disruption of families is the highest aim in
social service and gives us an opportunity
to raise the standards of the child’s environ
ment. However, a budget sufficient to in
sure the mother an adequate living is re
quired, including provision for education
and recreation. Our communities have
always been alive to the financial needs of
an ()rphanage caring for children from
“broken homes.” It is now our job to ac
quaint the communities in which we func
tion, to the even greater importance of car
ing tor children in their own homes. In
the institution, our children had every
chance for a higher education, as do those
in their present foster homes. If our sub
sidized children sho\v r mental ability and
are otherwise worthy, we should give them
the same opportunity for higher educa
tion. We must realize that there is no
satisfactory substitute for the child’s own
home, where the importance of individual
ized and intensive care of the children is
taken for granted.
W e must be just as much concerned
about conditions in our subsidized homes
s in our foster homes in regard to sani
tation, play, rest, proper food and protec-
hon. hor the past twenty-five years, the great
development and tendency have been for the pres-
at ion of the home. The home is the keystone
civilization; therefore, in providing for our
families, we must recognize that it is the right of
asses of society to maintain a standard which
for health, comfort and the possibilities of
ical and intellectual improvement. Develop
lildren healthful, effective personalities and
will grow' up efficient, able people.
v ith the division of service giving all super-
n outside of Atlanta to Mr. Wyle, in conjunc-
with his visits of organization in the various
nunities of our District, the children subsi-
! outside of Atlanta are visited, with a few
ptions, about once or twice a year. I his is
ly insufficient as my own experience in At-
testifies. Of course, to have these families
1 oftener w’ould involve an expenditure of
which even in normal times makes this ob-
>' desirable procedure almost prohibitive, and
ese days of depression completely out of the
ion. Our subsidized families in Atlanta are
i about every three weeks, some requiring
frequent visits, others carrying on without
essary intrusion on our part. Of course,
sickness, accident or other unusual incident
s, we offer our service at any time. When
ev ents happen in the families residing at a
fee, our service could not be rendered so
£ SOUTHERN ISRAELITE *
Mrs. Armand Wyle, Social Service Director of
Hebrew Orphans’ Home.
Recommendations Drawn L’p by Committee of
Hebrew Orphans’ Home
The following recommendation were drawn up by »*'
o ,hi Orpkani' Horn. 7'"'
board meeting when reports were given. In bne/ the
mendatxons are:
That the suggestion in the report of Mr. Armand
Wyle, Executive Vice-President, that a study of the
specialization and procedure for making the wor
more scientific, be created and presented to the
next annual meeting. That the following organi
zations be notified of grateful thanks for their
interest and cooperation: The Atlanta I ubercu-
losis Association; the State Department of Pubic
Welfare with especial thanks to Mr. J. I. raulic
ner; the Atlanta Community Chest and Mr. Frank
Miller, its Executive Secretary; the medical staff;
the Council of Jewish Women, the Sisterhood,
Hebrew Orphans’ Aid and other such institutions
that have given assistance. The committee took
special cognizance of the unusua showing of the
Simon Wolf Endowment Fund under the leadership
of Mr. Herbert J. Haas.
The committee also recommended that a copy
of Mrs. Armand Wyle’s report be sent to the
General Board and to the different institutions in
Atlanta, as well as to the orphanages throughout
the United States. Deep appreciation was ex
pressed for her outstanding accomplishments and
heart interest. The committee expressed particular
appreciation to the President of the Hebrew Or
phans’ Home, Mr. V. H. Kriegshaber.
easily. Nevertheless, it can readily be per
ceived that we are not doing this particular
job as effectively as we should like with
only casual visits made at times secondary
to the purpose of Mr. Wyle’s visit to the
communities where our children live.
Organized charity today differs from
the early method of just giving relief. In
our work with mothers and their children
we do help financially, but the bigger serv
ice we render is that of adjustment—help
ing individuals to have a more effective way
of living. Relief always gives us an en
trance into the family and gives us an op
portunity to be of service when other prob
lems present themselves. Most of our
families are cared for over comparatively
long periods, because there is no wage
earner in the family. This long time care
gives us an opportunity to know our fami
lies better and makes it possible for us to
carry out prolonged plans of treatment for
the children, which in these cases is a dis
tinct advantage. So if we are to perform
the service we have set out to do it should
be done with thoroughness, and efficiency
depends upon what is known among social
workers as case load. In a digest of the
w'ork and cost of 15 Jewish child placing
agencies throughout the country, which was
compiled from data received monthly from
these agencies, w r e find that though divided
between Mr. Wyle (outside Atlanta) and
me (in Atlanta) we arc given the largest
of them all, 59 which has since been in
creased to 63, the smallest being 20 and the
average 33.
Any case load running over 40 is ab
normal. Home-finding and placement is
a carefully prepared job in which references
must be obtained, histories, including per
sonality, health and schooling of individuals
in the foster family as well as the child’s
family thoroughly studied and possible
psychological reactions considered, to make
the placement lasting. Even at best we must
sometimes transfer a child from one home to an
other. The frequency of re-placements must nec
essarily depend upon the types of children under
care, problem children requiring more frequent
transfer than so-called normal children. We are
happy to report only one transfer during the year.
An overload of duties in industry has been found
to affect efficiency and ultimate profits, and the
analogy in this instance is clear. Social service
is most exacting if it is done with even moderate
justice to the client, and consists of much more
than merely interviewing the beneficiary in her
home or in our office. Some cases require more
service and correspondence than others, but a
record must be made of them all in order to keep
an accurate picture of the family before us at all
times, and each case has its changes in condition
from year to year and from month to month. Our
work is becoming increasingly important and
arduous and the expense of it must be paid by
dollars and energy with a suitable ratio for each
which cannot be emphasized too greatly. The
alternative is wasted energy and money in terms
of incomplete service somewhere.
In my report to you last year, I dwelt largely
on the w r ork done for our foster home children.
This work has continued with few changes and the
children placed have shown marked improvement
in health appearance (Please turn to page 15)
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