Barefoot Bandit

'Barefoot Bandit's' film rights are nabbed for $1 million - latimes.com

I worked group care for six years with kids like Colton Harris-Moore and I have a warm place in my heart for them. All the kids we had in care were severely abused as children.

Like Catch me if You Can and like Frank Abagnale this is an opportunity for Colton to make amends, restitution and perhaps, even bigger, help other kids who are in situations they don't understand, but are reacting to in their young lives.

At the Willamette Writers Conference I attended last week I met the author Jackson Holtz, an Everett, Washington reporter who wrote "Fly Colton, Fly, the True Story of the Barefoot Bandit and I said to him, "I was hoping Frank Abagnale contacted Colton. What Colton needed and needs is a good parent figure in his life." Jackson said that Frank Abagnale did, indeed, reach out to make contact.

Here's Jackson's latest on Colton Harris-Moore and the film about his time as the Barefoot Bandit:
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20110810/NEWS01/708109797


I enjoyed reading the book, coming from the Pacific Northwest and the San Juan Islands I was reminded of my high school years; and how the forests, the lakes, beaches and islands were where we spent our teens years, connecting to our friends trying to figure out our lives...or not. Some were just trying to survive and some didn't survive the child abuse going on in homes in a small town. 

We have to talk about it. For the healing of kids like Colton as well as healing the community. These things that happen to kids don't  happen in a vacuum, the community tacitly in some fashion agrees not to talk about what we know and what we see happening to kids. How many community members looked away, how many teachers looked away...what did the Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) do or not do? What happened to Colton's mom when she was a kid that led her to be the way she was and is in life and as a parent?

Like Frank Abagnale, Colton can turn his life around and do good in this world. He's taking the right actions and I don't see a reason for him to spend six years in prison.

Danette Zaring the Spokane licensed day care provider who slammed 23 month old Hailee Rhodes down into the playpen causing permanent brain damage to that sweet innocent children only got five years in prison.

Colton didn't hurt anyone physically and he certainly didn't hurt any children.  Balancing out those scales of justice, let us support Colton to become a person like Frank Abagnale, let him make restitution and amends to go on and lead a wonderful life.

I will go see his movie to remember how the forest, lakes and islands gave us kids varying degrees of comfort, solitude away from what was going on in some of our homes and just the fun of kids hanging out together in the Pacific Northwest.

I wish Colton well in turning his life around.  I wish his mother well, too, in turning her life around.  It's not too late for her either, it will be hard work but worth it. It's never too late to have a happy childhood.