Saturday, April 25, 1998 | 11:51 a.m.
BOULDER CITY -- The situation at home for any of the kids at St. Jude's Ranch for Children can cry out for a change. The ranch is there for them as it has been for those who need to put their lives of abuse and neglect behind them.
St. Jude's, a nonprofit, nonsectarian charity, assists children who are homeless or who have been physically, sexually or mentally abused. It gives them a safe, homelike atmosphere.
Some kids have come from homes where they were beaten, molested, burned or forced to work the streets by parents or stepparents. One child came with so many cigarette burns on the bottom of his feet -- from an angry father -- that he could hardly walk.
"These kids feel the world has abandoned them," said the Rev. Herbert Ward, an Anglican priest and, since 1970, executive director of the ranch. "They come in with a lot of anger. We use all forms of therapy to help them, but most importantly we offer unconditional love."
The organization, formed in 1966 by an Episcopalian priest, survives almost exclusively through private donations and fund-raisers.
St. Jude's directors are hoping the automobile museum opening May 15 will draw in tourists on their way to Hoover Dam. The museum is at St. Jude's campus, 100 St. Judes St., about a half-mile northeast of Boulder City's lone stoplight.
The Ogorek Gallery and Exhibit Hall -- featuring thousands of model cars, including concept cars from a Flint, Mich., auto museum and the world's largest combustion engine (three stories high) -- is part of the continuous effort to generate funds for the ranch.
The 40-acre ranch, in hills overlooking Lake Mead, already attracts tourists with its gift shop and chapel tours.
Jim Knox, assistant director, is hoping the museum will generate more gift-shop business, which amounts to about $90,000 a year. The museum will be donation-based.
"We want to be self-sustaining," Knox said. "We're hoping to do $1,000 a day with the tours and buses that pass through here."
It costs almost $3,000 a day to feed, clothe and house the children, Knox said. Social workers, cottage parents and therapists add to the budget.
The campus has eight cottages, with six kids to a cottage. Two cottage parents live full-time with the children.
Knox said a safe and trusting environment is vital to the childrens' recovery.
Which is why the staff also includes 10 dogs, 10 cats, seven rabbits, five guinea pigs, two turtles, a few birds and a rat named Farley.
"Pet therapy is the best form of therapy because the kids don't understand the concept of trust. They can trust an animal before they can trust a human being. Animals have unconditional love," Knox said.
The pets also ease the tension when dealing with heavy issues.
Farley the rat came with Dr. Dawn Berg, an expressive art therapist who uses all forms of therapy such as dance and movement.
"Farley prefers to be with people, rather than in his cage," she said. "The kids love him. When coming to tough abuse issues, the kids say, "I have to go get Farley."
Fable, Berg's boxer, also helps during the therapy sessions.
Since the kids are at different levels, individual treatment plans are geared to each child's needs. And each child is encouraged to be himself.
Knox said that some kids come to the ranch without an identity, or feel that they don't have one.
"They have no self-esteem," he said. St. Jude's attempts show each boy and girl that they're worth as much as anyone else.
Most attend public school in Boulder City. Those who are behind attend a homebound school on the campus until they are ready for public school.
Some children are placed on the ranch after a divorce or death of a parent. They stay for eight months to a year while their parents go through therapy.
Ward said the objective is to get them back with their parents. "That's where they should be, if the parent is stable."
Other children, some of whom are wards of the court, may not be allowed to see their parents. St. Jude's becomes their home and the staff becomes their lifelong family.
Ward said the relationships don't end when the kids turn 18, they last a lifetime. Some return to help the ranch. One graduate is now a cottage parent.
Ward, who said the mission at St. Jude's is to turn out productive citizens, began the Born Again Card recycling program in 1972 as part of a learn-to-earn program that breaks the welfare cycle.
"Almost all of the kids are from lower-income homes," he said. "Some of these kids are third- and fourth-generation welfare."
The program recycles used greeting cards sent in from people around the world. The new cards are sold in the gift shop or through mail orders.
"You learn a better sense of value than government checks," he said. "Greeting-card recycling is part of that training program."
The children, who make the cards only if they want to, earn 15 cents a card. Five cents of that goes to the cottage for trips, 2 cents goes to people less fortunate. The remaining 8 cents is theirs to spend however they want.
One child, John, says he makes up to 500 cards a week and plans to start saving some money. Another raised almost $4,000 from making cards.
St. Jude's encourages the kids to save for college. Six recent graduates of St. Judes are now in college.
An Industrial Dollar Store in the warehouse teaches the children how to budget money and learn priorities. Industrial dollars, earned from small chores around the ranch, allow the kids to purchase clothes, shoes, bedding and toiletries, all of which were donated by companies.
The warehouse also stores donations for the annual rummage sale, which this year brought in $20,000.
"I cannot say enough about the generosity of the people in Las Vegas," Knox said. "The people here are just wonderful."
The ranch is a busy place. Visitors stop in year-round and volunteers help out with the warehouse and greeting-card program.
Ford Motor Co. provided $200,000 in seed money to develop marketing strategies for St. Jude's, such as The Heartbeat of Hope video that last month won the National Telly Award for best new marketing video.
Ford has challenged St. Jude's to open 25 facilities nationwide by the year 2006. St. Jude's currently has one campus in Boulder City and two in San Antonio.
"Success is so high, they want to see it happen all over the country," Ward said.
Plans for the Boulder City ranch include a baseball field, indoor swimming pool, gymnasium and a stadium with a track and football field.
The view of Lake Mead, the chapel with hand-painted wall and ceiling murals, an original Salvador Dali painting of a cross and an 18th century gold-leafed San Antonio de Padua are among attractions at the ranch.
Knox said he never gets tired of giving tours.
"It's a pleasure for me to show how people care," he said.
"They're great kids, every one of them. They just need love."
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