The adolescent boy looked at Otis McHenry like he was nuts. “What do you mean?” he replied.
“I said, ‘Are you a square, a triangle, or a circle?’” repeated Otis. “That’s your life right now; you don’t know what you are. But I’m here to help. If you let me in a bit, I can do that. Believe me, I don’t want to hurt you, I just want to help you.”
The boy did eventually “let him in,” and today he’s one of more than 30 former foster youth who still keep in touch with Otis and his wife Sheryl. For more than 12 years, the Haskell, Oklahoma, couple have provided love and guidance to youth that have experienced emotional and physical trauma. Because of trauma, some children in foster care struggle to cope with often severe behavioral issues that require the skills of specially trained and specially motivated foster parents.