Evening star., 1938-10-30

T0CAPT. M|LL|KEN
Mission Drives Success
Would Relieve Worries of
PoIiceWoman.

Success Of the Central Missions city,
wide drive for the $l25000 John s.
Bennett Memorial Building now enter
ing its second week will spell the end
of lot of grief and worry on the part
Of Capt. Rhoda j. Milliken, Washing
| tons No. policewoman.
AS head of the Womans Bureau,
Capt Milliken says that one of her
most difficult duties lies in finding
temporary shelter for children made
homeless by parents who are in diff
culties with the police or for those of
poverty stricken fathers and mothers
who bring them to police headquarters
for lack of any other place to take
them
While the Childrens Emergency
Home is able to shelter a good number
OF these waits, their increasing num-
bers have reached point where the
missions need for additional dormi-
tory space has become acute.
The new building, which will be
erected from campaign funds, will
meet this situation by providing hous-
ing facilities not only for homeless
men but for children as well.
A Pathetic Example.
Discussing her problem, Capt. Milli-
ken cited the pathetic example of
mother who, separated from her hus-
band, came from New York City to
washington with her 6-year- old daugh-
ter. The mother was under a delu-
sion the child was a twin sister of
Shirley Temple and also believed an
Imaginary gang of desperadoes was
about to kidnap the child The mother
and child were brought to the Wom-
ans Bureau, and the mother was taken
to Gallinger Hospital Naturally Capt
Milliken did not want to put the child
in the Detention Home along with
boy and girl juvenile cases. Hence she
took the youngster to the Children's
Emergency Home where Mrs. John S.
Bennett, the present mission superin-
tendent. sheltered the child until rela-
| tives who agreed to care for her were
located.
It's not always so easy. Free
quently Mrs Bennett cannot take
Capt. MiNiken's charges because of a
lack OF space. This means a further
and involved search for a temporary
shelter for the child.
Stressing the missions need for ad-
ditional housing facilities, Capt. Mtlh-
ken also cited the case of three little
Washington boys, 4, 6 and 8, whose
mother had suddenly deserted them.
Unable to adequately care for the chill
dren, the father, laborer, brought
them to the Women's Bureau, where
ne enlisted aid in vain attempt to
find his wife. Again Capt. Millken
took the children to the home, where
they were sheltered for two months
until relatives were found to care for
! them.
Maj. Brown to Broadcast.
These are only two examples of the
child problem which confronts Capt.
Milliken daily, but they are two good
reasons why she wants the campaign
to go over the top"
Also interested in the missions cam
paign. but from another aspect, is
Police Supt. Maj. Ernest w. Brown,
who will deliver radio address in be.
half of the mission at 1:15 pm Tues
day over VOL. ........
Declaring the mission has been a
great influence in keeping down crime
tn Washington, Maj. Brown said: II
say: this because. q man, hungry, cold
and without place to sleep Is q des-
perate man. And desperate men COM
NIT crimes they may never have in
tended to commit out of sheer need for
fundamental comforts. Hence, the
rise and fall Of much Of our work in
catching the law violator Is propor-
tionate to the capacity Of the Mission
to house and feed \ths stranger with
his little bundle Of, belongings"