Office of Adult Services Job Story

Names are changed from the original story.

Edgar, a 78 year-old man living in Ozark, Ala., has a fear of going home. It has nothing to do with walking through a dangerous neighborhood at night, or getting attacked by the neighborhood dogs; Edgar is afraid of what his violent sons will do to him once he arrives home. Edgar’s two sons see him as a burden, and punish him for this on a daily basis by pushing him around, or neglecting him.

Eventually, the abuse had taken its toll on Edgar, and he was checked into a hospital, where his bruises and cuts aroused suspicion. “A fight with the dog,” said Edgar to the curious nurses. However, Edgar’s story and the nurses’ check ups did not match up. Carolyn March, of the Department of Human Resources, was called in to handle Edgar and get him proper care and a safe place to live; he was now free from the abuse and the broken home that troubled him for years.

March regularly handles cases such as this at Dale County’s Department of Human Resources. “Edgar’s case was one of the more violent ones I have seen, said March, “it was a good thing he came to the hospital when he did.” Most of her cases deal with protecting a person’s human rights and their wellbeing. This includes complications with prescriptions medications, emergency food supplies, transportation services and homeless services.

After March was contacted, the trial process began with assesing the problems of Edgar’s current household. His sons did not make sure Edgar had clean clothes or towels to use, and did not care whether or not he had a decent meal. Edgar seemed to be just short of a caged animal in his home, and his current situation was deemed officially unsafe for him to continue living there. Edgar was put under government care and was coerced into filing a complaint against his sons

At this stage in Edgar’s case, March researched any job opportunies to help Edgar get back on his feet for the time being based on the job’s availability and Edgar’s competence. If one cannot be found then, after the client’s financial situation is taken into consideration and analyzed, the hunt for a fitting nursing home begins. “This is one of the hardest parts,” March said, “mostly because whoever is in this situation does not have the financial stability to be placed in a nursing home.”

After finding out months later that Edgar dropped all charges against his sons, March was curious to know the reasoning behind it. March, with a defeated tone in her voice, asked Edgar why he dropped the charges against his negligent sons. “That’s all I have in this world,” Edgar said “I am 78 years old, who else do I have?”

March stresses that not every case ends like this. Most of her cases end up doing a significant amount of good in the lives of the elderly she says. “My motivation to keep going on with my job is that, one of these days I could very well be in the same position and hope that someone will be there for me,” March said.