LaVel Chamberlain:
CLASS OF 1984
Timberline High SchoolClass of 1984
Lacey, WA
LaVel's Story
Life
Life has been good. I live in Spokane. I'm married to my best friend of many years, Monty. We have 4 children, 2 girls and 2 boys. Our oldest girl we met when she was about 14 and she graciously agreed to let us to keep her. ;) Hopefully soon we will be adding a 15 year-old boy whom we plan to adopt from the foster care system. I was his GAL (Guardian ad Litem) for 1 1/2 years, and after I left my position, and with the blessings of his bio-parents, we petitioned the court for placement. This parenting thing is so amazing! Never in a million years did I think that being a stay-at-home mom, doing the PTO stuff, and working with abused and neglected kiddos would be the life I'd LOVE.
My biggest passion is working with abused and neglected kiddos and their families. It is heartbreaking but probably not necessarily for the reasons one might think. The bureaucratic system entrusted with the care and concern of wounded children is far more broken than I ever imagined possible. I am tremendously pained by the children and families I meet, who despite their attempts, have suffered due to the subjective actions of the individuals whose job is to ensure their safety, permanency, and well-being. Although I knew I wanted to work with these kiddos and families I feared my heart couldn't handle it. Surprisingly it has so far, bu...Expand for more
t that is not to say it isn't considerably more broken and heavy. However, that pain and heartache combined with insight has led me down paths I likely would have never considered: meeting with legislators, testifying in court, advocacy, political involvement, and attending a multitude of trainings and seminars to gain knowledge and network with like-minded individuals, etc. Yep, definitely did not see any of that coming my way in the early 1980's.
The other thing that takes up my time is my animal rescues. If you don't believe me you should see the scars on my arm and hand. And despite the rumors, they were not from two eight pound felines named Mittens & Fluffy. Rather they are from ferocious, diabolical, thirty-pound savages appropriately named Rambo and Satan! :) The best rescue, I would have to say was my Canada Goose, Alex. Alex ended up attended many classes at the university despite not being properly enrolled, due to attachment issues and at the recommendation of his therapist. Ah, who am I kidding, that imprinting thing...yeah, it went both ways. And one professor said he thought my willingness to care for a goose 24-hours a day, while completing my studies, should warrant an "A" in Behavioral Genetics. Who was I to argue?
I sincerely hope everyone is happy, and that life is everything they imagined.
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