Here is an excerpt from a letter I wrote to another staff kid some years ago:
Among other topics I had mentioned a couple of things to him:
One was that 4 or 5 common reasons that I felt the majority of people arrived at Prairie.
1. People who genuinely came with servant hearts and were at PBI for very pure reasons.
These folks were willing to do whatever they were called on to do to the best of their ability.
2. People that were there that were completely incompetent and couldn't get a job in the real world and found a place at Prairie.
3. People that were very qualified and came with a purpose and a mission and brought a lot of skills, education, etc, to the table.
4. People who were hiding, running or had escaped from some situation - work, church, home, etc. As you know, in those days HR didn't do a lot of due diligence on most people. PBI ended up with a percentage of abusers, crooks, etc. because of this. (Doug Kirk had many stories of how people just used to show up ~ worldly belongings and kids in tow ~ many times not haven given any notice in advance of their arrival.)
5. People that used PBI as a stepping stone to a career. PBI paid for their education upgrades, etc., fed their kids, housed them, and then they moved on to greener pastures.
On another topic, I think we as PBI staff kids had some distinct advantages or gained some skills growing up at PBI.
2. We were exposed to a vast array of people and skills, trades, etc. Being able as kids to hang out at the machine shop, farm, carpenter shop, electric shop, etc. etc., gave us a broad view of how a lot of those things functioned.
3. Not having much in the way of material possessions, and no TV, a lot of us became avid readers and learned to be self driven when it came to creative skills.
4. Being exposed to a wide range of cultures, both foreign as well as people from all over North America, we learned to relate and interact with a variety of people.
5. For some of us having missionaries, preachers, etc. through our homes gave us a much broader world view than an equivalent kid say brought up in Acme.
6. Many kids learned a trade, starting very young, sometimes as young as Junior High that have served them well.
Many staff kids have gone on to be over achievers driven by a variety of reasons I am sure, but I believe whether recognized or not, a lot of the skills that we have used in our lives were developed and fostered at PBI. There are others, but these are what come to mind immediately.
Thoughts?
SjR
2. People that were there that were completely incompetent and couldn't get a job in the real world and found a place at Prairie.
3. People that were very qualified and came with a purpose and a mission and brought a lot of skills, education, etc, to the table.
4. People who were hiding, running or had escaped from some situation - work, church, home, etc. As you know, in those days HR didn't do a lot of due diligence on most people. PBI ended up with a percentage of abusers, crooks, etc. because of this. (Doug Kirk had many stories of how people just used to show up ~ worldly belongings and kids in tow ~ many times not haven given any notice in advance of their arrival.)
5. People that used PBI as a stepping stone to a career. PBI paid for their education upgrades, etc., fed their kids, housed them, and then they moved on to greener pastures.
On another topic, I think we as PBI staff kids had some distinct advantages or gained some skills growing up at PBI.
( I am sure we can make a negative list as well! )
1. Being exposed to and able to interact in a large community, we learned a lot about communication skills. Both verbal and written with a cross section of adults and students.
1. Being exposed to and able to interact in a large community, we learned a lot about communication skills. Both verbal and written with a cross section of adults and students.
2. We were exposed to a vast array of people and skills, trades, etc. Being able as kids to hang out at the machine shop, farm, carpenter shop, electric shop, etc. etc., gave us a broad view of how a lot of those things functioned.
3. Not having much in the way of material possessions, and no TV, a lot of us became avid readers and learned to be self driven when it came to creative skills.
4. Being exposed to a wide range of cultures, both foreign as well as people from all over North America, we learned to relate and interact with a variety of people.
5. For some of us having missionaries, preachers, etc. through our homes gave us a much broader world view than an equivalent kid say brought up in Acme.
6. Many kids learned a trade, starting very young, sometimes as young as Junior High that have served them well.
Many staff kids have gone on to be over achievers driven by a variety of reasons I am sure, but I believe whether recognized or not, a lot of the skills that we have used in our lives were developed and fostered at PBI. There are others, but these are what come to mind immediately.
Thoughts?
SjR
What a wonderful and thoughtful summary of our unique childhood community and the positives gained thereby. I’m grateful for this, and that!
ReplyDeleteI was not a staff kid, but a student's kid. My recent Alzheimer's diagnosis makes me uncertain of details, but I recall you had some remarkable accomplishments and you taught me a lot as well. I always admired you. I remember working a little on building Suute Sound and recording some things.
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