Family of Woodstock, Inc.
Tara Sloan
BSHS / 355
December 14, 2015
Aaron Short
Family of Woodstock, Inc.
Introduction
“There was a festival in 1969, and this festival was called “Woodstock” although the site was more than an hour west of the sleepy little town with the actual name” (Burger, 2011, p. 142). Once there was word of this festival there were carloads and busloads of youth that came from all around America. This little town became quite famous and many of the teens were sleeping out on the ground and in park benches. There was a lady that noticed the overwhelming amount of teens living on the streets with no food or clean clothes. This lady, Gail Varsi noticed the need of food, shelter, and clothing and decided to open her home to the youth to help them get back on their feet or send them back home.
How Family of Woodstock, Inc. came about
When this festival happened, many teens from places all around the world came to join in and many of these teens were runaways or individuals that just wanted to get away from home. Many of these teens had no money but they seem to have made it there anyway. Many of them were found sleeping in the woods and in park benches around in the parks. Some were victims of abuse, neglect, mental problems, and others were just looking for somewhere else to go. When Gail Varsi seen this, she automatically knew that something had to be done to help our youth. This is when she decided to open her doors to the individuals that were in need. She also opened her phone line and made it a hotline so that individuals could call to seek help or talk about problems they may be having. With the help of organizations and businesses that were around them, she was able to organize clothing exchanges, food banks, and in some cases provide transportation for the individuals to get back to where they came from.
Specialized to meet the needs
The roots of the Family of Woodstock Inc. is Mrs. Varsis open doors, clothing...