Featured Story: Frankie

Volunteers of America is proud of the opportunity to develop these services and the quality of support we have brought to people’s lives, including Frankie Lowry in southern Indiana. Nearly 35 years ago, Margaret and Francis H. Lori, Sr. sent their disabled son Frankie to the Muscatatuck State Developmental Center in Butlerville, Ind. “I was 41 and had a new baby. Frankie was getting disorderly and rough,” said Margaret Lori. “Our pastor encouraged us to place him there. It was the hardest thing we ever did.” But when Muscatatuck’s closure was announced, the Lori family was worried that Frankie wouldn’t adjust. Early this year, they met their local Volunteers of America program director at church and saw the possibility of a better life for Frankie in Volunteers of America’s Clarksville, Ind., group home. “He’s doing just wonderfully,” said Margaret, 84. “He gets up every day and makes his bed. He vacuums his room and takes his dishes from the table to the sink. The staff has taught him manners and he behaves so well.” Frankie’s outings have even included visiting the Lori home for the first time since he left for Muscatatuck. “He’s growing and developing and changing and that’s exciting,” said Margaret. “It’s like a dream come true.”