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Though it's been a couple of weeks since the Sun-Gazette first reported it, I am haunted by the headline, "Two mothers jailed after 3 kids found in 'deplorable' apartment."
Two women, ages 22 and 31, are alleged to have abandoned three children, ages 1, 2 and 9, in an apartment in Williamsport.
Only because the kids were screaming so loud did neighbors hear them and rescue the children while calling authorities.
The women had left, locked the kids in the apartment and came back much later that day, police said. They allegedly did that regularly.
City police described the scene as "deplorable," with feces, bugs, mold and filth on the walls, floor ... and the children.
The two women, police said, "… admitted to locking the two older children in the room covered with feces. The two also admitted to locking them in this room at least once a day."
Further, they "admitted to "locking the two oldest in the room while leaving the youngest unsupervised so many times that they would have difficulty even guessing how often it happened," police said.
The one woman went so far as to tell police that her children "would be safer if she did not have custody of them."
The two sit in jail today. The kids are in protective custody.
Like many of you, I am a parent and a grandparent.
I was lucky enough to grow up with loving parents whose daily lives revolved around their five kids.
Our dad worked up to three jobs at a time while mom stayed home, raising three boys and two girls.
Yet, we wanted for very little; our mother and father made our home life simply wonderful. It was and continues to be a blessing.
It was the kind of life many families in our blue-collar city lived post-World War II.
Life revolved around family.
Dad worked long days.
Mom stayed at home with the kids.
It was more feasible then as the cost of living was so much lower.
But it also was the custom back in the 40s, 50s and 60s.
From that upbringing, I learned that when you have kids, they become your life.
It takes a strong, unwavering commitment where nothing else matters but the safety, security, health, well-being and happiness of your kids comes first and foremost.
Sure, you can have fun, but not at the expense of your kids.
Your day-to-day work, play and toil must be centered around raising your kids so you can build a foundation upon which they can do better than you did.
My heart breaks every time a child is denied a chance to be safe and loved because a father abandons his kids and mom isn't able to properly raise children alone.
There are too many single-parent households in our world today.
It's so very sad when people think only of themselves. We have a lot of work to do.
Bob Rolley is publisher of the Williamsport Sun-Gazette. Email him at brolley@sungazette.com.