Boys Town Helps Kids Across the U.S.

Editor, Times-Dispatch:

I was pleasantly surprised to see Boys Town referenced and Father Flanagan quoted in the recent editorial, "The Formula," about Capital City, a school for troubled youth. It dawned on me that the current state of operations at Boys Town, and how Boys Town is affecting Virginia today, may not be well known to your readers.

The flagship of the organization -- the Village of Boys Town, located just outside Omaha -- was made famous by the 1938 movie "Boys Town," starring Spencer Tracy and Mickey Rooney. The village has its own post office, fire department, police department, schools, and medical facilities.

There is a mayor elected from the boys and girls and the children have a serious governing role in the village. Today Boys Town is made up of about 50 percent young ladies, who were first admitted in the 1970s.

Boys Town, which recently celebrated its 90th anniversary, operates programs that are truly national in scope and affect every state in the Union, including Virginia. Boys Town operates at several site locations outside of its home base in Nebraska. We operate sites from California to New England and from Florida to Iowa. The closest site to Virginia is located in Washington, D.C.

Our national hospices, specializing in pediatric speech, hearing, and other communication disorders, served about 30,000 boys and girls, including children from Virginia, last year.

Our National Hotline is a ready refuge for children and families in dysfunction and pain. It takes more than 1,000 phone calls each day. Our training branch has assisted schools across the country in developing discipline programs for the classroom.

Our award-winning Common Sense Program is used by families and organizations in Virginia. Other programs we operate include temporary shelters, long-term residential care, intensive residential care, and shelters for newborns.

Jim Secrist, National Director,

Gift and Estate Planning, Boys Town. Farmville.