By Wayne Cooke

Love playing Bingo?  Ever play at the Bingo Hall on  Bridgeport in Lakewood?  If you did, you may know that you were supporting a very unique program: GATEWAYS.  Gateways is the present day version of an older program dating back to 1890, when it was known as the Children’s Industrial Home and provided a warm home with love and structure for otherwise homeless youth.

Gateways now has a fabulous 32 acres near Waller on 104^th St.  It, too, provided a home for youth, who learned to grow food, tend livestock, and repair tools.  But bad times came, and the property became neglected, taken over by weeds.

So Gateways hired an Executive Director, Charity Woolbright, with past success in building a successful program and plenty of experience and accreditation in social work.  Charity grew up in Spanaway with her grandma, Margaret Sullivan, long-time Bethel elementary teacher.

She built up programs that help children and parents.  The EVASE program provides education and relationship management for post-separation parenting.  The related Domestic Violence Victim Impact Panel meets from 6pm to 8pm on the first Tuesday of each month, providing a wealth of professional services and information to people affected by domestic violence.  Call them at 383-4361 to sign up.  Charity also worked with a nearby church to start a community garden on a small part of the former farmland.  On the other side of the property, she arranged for work parties from local schools, under the direction of a permaculture teacher, to clear land and prepare it for a gradual return to producing food.  That also includes starting to clear and return to good condition the three huge commercial greenhouses on the property.  Nearby are the large carpentry shop and equally large machine shop, both well-equipped.

This work is in preparation for the longed for return of the TRAYN program.  Some day Charity hopes to see the two large portables on the property housing supervised youth aged 16 to 24 with no stable home.  The Transitional-Aged Youth Network (TRAYN) is a unique program that teaches self-reliance, personal responsibility, and job skills to youth as on-site apprentices, helping them successfully transition from youth to adulthood.

What terrific possibilities exist on those fabulous 32 acres.  What great potential to help youth and families.  But Charity is keenly aware that the income supporting the dream is from that Bingo Hall on Bridgeport, and lately its attendance has been down.  Is there another way?  Do you have any ideas?  If so, phone 383-4361.  It’s time for a few good men and women to pitch in with help, because Bingo isn’t enough any more.

This article written by Wayne Cooke, wcooke648@gmail.com