By Mary Leaver, Editor

A day of fun and relaxation for custody youth in Blaine, Kingfisher and Major counties was the focus as the 16th annual Tri County Youth Conference took place on the lawn of the Blaine County courthouse on Aug. 7.

Event organizer Christi Park, OKDHS, said the event began so that custody youth would have an opportunity to come to the courthouse for a positive reason and to see the judge, court staff, OKDHS staff and others in a relaxed and casual setting.

Over the years, it has gone from a small event planned by just a few people to one that receives community-wide support in the form of volunteers, monetary donations and donations of goods and services, all for the benefit of tri-county youth, she said.

“They are always there, willing to help,” she said. “We appreciate you.”

Judge Mark Moore, associate district judge, Blaine County, added that it is important for the community to embrace the children because they are the state’s future and one day, may be caretakers for many of the adults present at the event.

“The reason we put this together is to tell our kids ‘you are special’ and ‘you are important,’” he said.

OKDHS Director Howard Hendrick and Gary Miller, OKDHS children and family services division director, were in attendance, along with officials from Oklahoma Juvenile Affairs.

Nicole Coleman, 19, a former OKDHS custody youth, spoke to other custody youth about her experiences and the importance of communication. She now attends Oklahoma City University, but from the age of six, she grew up largely in state custody.

“It was difficult to go through, but it has made us stronger,” she told the audience. “We are able to adapt to different situations later as an adult.”

Coleman said the hardest lesson she learned was to communicate with her worker, their supervisor and her foster parents.

“Having an attitude and getting mad doesn’t help you get what you want,” she said. “Learn how to network. As hard as it is, you have to be strong.”

She credited the assistance of her workers and foster parents in helping her to get to where she is today.

“I saw that if I’d grown up in that environment, I wouldn’t have made it.”

She also encouraged workers and foster parents to be honest with the children they serve and not to sugarcoat what they tell children.

Following the short program inside the courthouse, the fun began on the courthouse lawn. Each child was able to partake in arts and crafts, t-shirt painting, food and refreshments and to jump on several inflatables.

Tim Scott, Blaine County court bailiff, said he became involved with the youth conference after he started working at the courthouse, but his interest in working with youth dates back more than 20 years to the time he’s spent as a youth minister.

He said the community support extends from the Blaine County employees, OKDHS staff, local businesses and area schools. That sort of support is what’s helped the event grow from a “shoe string budget” to the large turnout seen more recently.

“Seeing the smiles on the kids’ faces is why I do it,” she said.

The list of supporters included: Great Plains Systems of Care, Sooner Success, Rural Health Projects, Extreme Inflatables, Karl’s Apple Market, Jim’s IGA, Alco, Diamondback Correctional Facility, Clowns Daisy Bell and Abnormal, Cornerstone Bank
  
Fairview/El Reno Child Support Services, Blaine County Community Health Action Team, Blaine/Kingfisher Tobacco Education Consortium, Opportunities Behavioral Care Services, Blaine/Kingfisher County Health Department, Blaine/Kingfisher County OKDHS, Youth & Family Services and the El Reno chapter of the Bikers Against Child Abuse.



Editor's Note: For more photos from the Tri County Youth Conference, visit the event photo page.