HAVEN FOR CHILDREN OF METH USERS PLANNED

As sheriff of Cumberland County, Butch Burgess has seen more misery caused
by methamphetamine addiction than he cares to ponder.

While he's sorry for the choices made by adults who succumb to the homemade
drug, his sympathy centers on the minor children of meth users. Through no
fault of their own, they are removed from their homes and placed in state
custody.

Sometimes they have to wait in the lobby at the county jail until Department
of Child Services workers place them with relatives or with foster homes.
Burgess, a foster parent for 10 years, believed there had to be a better
way.

''So I set out to find it,'' he said.

The answer is House of Hope, a place where children whose lives are
fractured by their parents' drug use, as well as children of sexual abuse
and neglect, can feel safe and stable during an uncertain time.

By the first of next year, Burgess and a crew of supporters plan to
transform a former Sunday school building at a church in downtown Crossville
into such a place.

''We've got to do something because what we're doing now isn't enough,'' he
said.

Burgess said a 4-year-old boy who is the family's latest foster child
prompted the resolve to create House of Hope.

''When he came to us, he was scared and wouldn't talk, but after a time when
he felt safe he talked all the time. It took a place where he felt safe.
That got me to thinking,'' the sheriff said.

''I'll be honest, with these adults it seems there's nothing we can do with
them. Once they're hooked on meth, they're hooked. They can't seem to shake
it. We spend three or four times more money on adults than we do on kids. I
think it's time we did something for the kids.''

Cumberland County bought the building, formerly the First Baptist Church on
First Street, and used part of it to house the county archives. But the
building at the rear remained vacant.

The House of Hope will be a safe house for a few hours or even a few days,
but it also will be a clearinghouse for services to children. Office space
will be provided to the Salvation Army and the local district attorney.

Burgess also has asked DCS Commissioner Michael J. Miller to assign local
caseworkers to the location.

''I just said I'm looking for a little flexibility,'' Burgess said.

Carla Aaron, spokeswoman for the department, said that Miller hasn't
committed to the plan but that such an arrangement would be similar to other
Child Advocacy Centers across the state.

''The House of Hope is a wonderful concept that we endorse wholeheartedly.
It's a wonderful place to have a place to go with children that are in a
difficult situation and need a place of security,'' Aaron said.

Burgess said about 50 children from his county were removed from their homes
after meth arrests last year and he expects that number to grow because the
drug use continues to spread.

He said he expects the bulk of the $250,000 needed to prepare the building
will be raised by grants, donations and donated labor.

''I haven't even really advertised it, and people are already stepping
forward. Churches are asking what can they do,'' he said.

''I may be sticking my neck out here, but we've got to do something for
these kids.''