ORANGE COUNTY PERSPECTIVE : Tapping an Inner Lode

Could it be that one way to lead young people out of the miserable cycle of life in gangs is to get them to see just how fortunate they are?

How about getting them to forget themselves while concentrating on somebody else, say, a youngster who may need assistance to perform even the most basic tasks of living?

The answer, if a program in Mission Viejo called Project MOVE is any indication, is a qualified but hopeful yes.

At a program being run by the County Department of Education for severely handicapped children, five carefully selected youth offenders from the Joplin Youth Center have been working twice a week with youngsters at the South County Special Center at Philip J. Reilly Elementary School.

The youth center wards, who have been sent to Joplin for conviction of crimes such as grand theft and aggravated assault, are screened and trained by therapists. They earn 15 high school credit hours, and most importantly, get an opportunity to really help someone else while putting their own lives in some perspective.

One former gang member, observed recently trying to help a severely handicapped girl move with the aid of a walker, found joy in simple progress: “Did you see that? I’ve never helped somebody in my whole life. Here I’m helping kids who need me,” he said.

Another youngster, a first-time offender, has resolved never to repeat his past mistake and to go on to really make something of himself. He wants to become a doctor who works with disabled children.

Providing such incentives is a wonderful plus to the immediate boon of giving therapists some able-bodied youngsters to do some of the heavy lifting. The administrator in charge of the county’s special schools says there were some initial concerns about whether the program would work but that the Joplin youngsters have turned out to be terrific helpers.

Now that’s a welcome report. Especially when so much of the news from the world of troubled youth is discouraging.