Institutionalized and Happy - Arnold, Bert

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Résumé :
This is the story of my brother LeRoy's life. Despite being abandoned by both parents and institutionalized for 10 years at Bethany Orphan's Home, LeRoy has remained a happy person for most of his 92 years. While the coping mechanisms LeRoy developed were remarkably different than my own, the lessons he learned at Bethany served him well throughout his interesting (and busy!) life.

Biographie:
Bert Arnold practiced as a dental hygienist for 10 years before changing careers and earning her master's degree in social work. Her years in social work were spent working in mental health institutions and supervising four group homes for teenagers. After her retirement, she worked with Vietnam amputees as a volunteer, designing a program to help vets return to their communities. When that conflict ended, she was director of social services at a program to serve people living with AIDS. Bert remains very active at age 90, both physically and mentally. She recently wrote her memoirs, Somewhere Out There to describe her experience of growing up at Bethany Orphan's home and how it shaped her life. Most importantly, Bert is devoted to her family and sees them all (and feeds them all!) as often as possible.