Chatting with Thomas are (l to r) Jack Bailey (Putnam Standard), Thomas, Don Broyles (Broyles Jewelers), Linda Williams (Prestera Center) and Rotarian Dr. Bill Ellis.

April 21, 2009

Her evangelical enthusiasm drew a scattering of "Amens" from Putnam Rotarians today as Nikki Thomas told the story of the Group Home for Girls operating for 25 years in Ceredo, West Virginia.

During that time, the organization has helped over 500 girls from at least 44 counties in the state. The group home is the only residential facility "within a six-hour radius" exclusively for girls aged twelve to eighteen years.

The girls are usually victims of sexual abuse, violence and neglect. They usually are dealing with behavioral issues and are assigned through the Circuit Court system.

"They are labeled as 'trouble,'" said Thomas. "But kids like that want attention -- any way they can get it.

"When I look into these girls' eyes, I see myself," she said.

"I grew up over a bar in New York. My father was extremely abusive and beat my mother on a regular basis. My childhood was an absolute nightmare. My parents did not care if I went to school. They drank all the time.

"At the age of sixteen I was homeless in Boston, surviving any way I could." Nikki Thomas worked for a time grooming racehorses at the Suffolk Downs.

"A young teacher happened to meet me. She took an interest in me. She invested in me. One day a week she helped me [until I had earned] my GED.

"The power of someone positive in my life turned my life around. I didn't know how to accept unconditional love, because I had never had it."

Gaining an education by bits and pieces, Thomas finally earned a degree in social services from Ohio University.

She became a Christian.

From a marriage of twenty-five years, she now has four "beautiful" children. And one grandson. Also "beautiful."

"Golden Girls pGroup Home] is my passion," she says. "I believe you can turn every pain in your life into power."