Columnist Sandra Thompson: Forget about TV: Meet the real survivors

Sandra Thompson

Friday, April 13, 2001 | 3:30 a.m.

Sandy Thompson is vice president/associate editor of the Las Vegas Sun. She can be reached at 259-4025 or e-mail at thompson@lasvegassun.com.

When Letha was a teenager running the streets, neighbors thought she'd end up getting pregnant and raising a bunch of kids.

Instead, Letha made up her mind to turn her life around. She stopped hanging around gangs, started playing high school basketball and got a part-time job.

Letha never did get pregnant, but at age 26 she is raising a bunch of kids. Nine to be exact. They range in age from 16 to 2. She has adopted six of them and has guardianship of the oldest three.

The children are Letha's brothers and sisters. Two other siblings, ages 6 and 4, are being raised by an aunt. The 12 siblings have the same mother, whose parental rights have been terminated. Because of confidentiality issues, Letha and the caseworker decline to discuss the reasons. The children have different fathers. The first is deceased, the second's whereabouts are unknown and the third's rights were terminated.

But this is not a tale about the parents' problems. It's an uplifting example of when the system works and how the determination, desire and dedication of Letha and her siblings are keeping them together.

For 10 years Letha was an only child. Then her mother had the first three boys. One day Letha noticed one of the boys repeating her actions. That's when she decided to do a "360" and get herself together so her brothers would have a positive role model. Basketball, school and work became her priorities. She went on to graduate from high school and is a cook at a Strip hotel. She always loved to cook -- a talent that comes in handy when you're feeding such a large brood.

"When I put my mind to something, I can do it," Letha says. She was determined to keep the family together after the children were taken from her mother's home in late 1999 and were made wards of the state. If the children had stayed in foster care, they would have been split up as sibling groups often are.

"I love my brothers and sisters," Letha says. "I'd rather they be with family than someone else."

Her resolve was so strong that she won the support of a Nevada Child and Family Services social worker and eventually everyone involved in her case.

"They have such a strong family bond," says social worker Marianne Hamrick. "I tried to put the family back together the best way we could. Most of the time we don't get this opportunity. This is why you do this job."

It is not the typical case; the children are not typical of those in state custody. "The children are well-behaved, polite, do well in school and have wonderful manners," Hamrick says.

She adds that Letha is a mature, down-to-earth person who has gone beyond the call of duty to keep her brothers and sisters together.

"The older boys help me a lot," Letha says, adding that they get good grades and play sports. The 16-year-old works part time and the others are looking forward to when they can work after school, too.

Letha has high hopes for the kids. "I tell them we're going to go to the best colleges." Her own hopes to attend college on a basketball scholarship were dashed when she blew out her knee. She would like to take business courses at the community college.

Letha's mom stops by daily and is a "big help." Hamrick says that although the children can't live with their mother, contact with her is encouraged.

Letha is licensed as a group home to accommodate the number of children in the small four-bedroom house. At first, everyone thought she was too young to care for so many children. But Hamrick believed in her and that opened other doors. The social worker recently went through the CASA Foundation to get a van donated that would accommodate transporting the brood. She's now looking for affordable housing near the older boys' high school so they can continue playing sports. Hamrick says it's important for the boys to stay in the same school to avoid more disruption in their lives.

Caseworkers with the Family Preservation Program also help Letha with parenting skills.

"It's everyone's job to ensure that this works," Hamrick says, adding that the children should be out of the state system within the next six months.

Producers of that overrated TV show "Survivor" should take note: In the real world, Letha and her brothers and sisters are the true survivors.

P.S.: They also deserve the million-dollar prize.