Western Kansas Child Advocacy Center Inc

Probably the most humiliating, weirdest, most uncomfortable experience I have ever had in my life was at the Western Kansas Advocacy Center . it’s already an uncomfortable and nerve racking experience as you are there due to something terrible happening to you loved one. As soon as I arrived I am met with an akward and obvious forced chit chat as if they are struggling on what to say and what to ask. Almost as if they are trying to keep you engaged in conversation because they are not ready. Questions on “so how’s it going?” “ doing anything this summer” with long moments of silence as they are trying to think of what to ask next. After what seemed like forever I finally ask if basically we are going to get started met with reassurance that they are “almost ready”. having previously told them that i had a very busy afternoon and even drove to another town to them i was assured that it “wouldn’t take that long” .I would think having a set time and knowing the time restraints that I had they would be ready for our appointment, and I was even late by a few minutes as the directions I got to their office was hard to follow and I had trouble locating. I am finally taken to a room followed by more in personal and akward questions about my child and the situation we were in. The first question took me off guard and confused me at first. It was “”Why are you here today” or something of that nature. It confused me as they knew why i was there, what was happening, and why the interview was scheduled so why start an already uncomfortable experience with such a question s if they don’t know?? i answered by asking if they were not aware and they responded that they were. So why are you asking me as if you don’t know making this experience weirder than it has already been? After my interview I am taken back to the waiting room and my child is taken back for an interview. A staff member that i was familiar with from past interviews was left with me in the waiting room and the pointless chatter began again with the long moments of silence between questions. At this point I am exhausted after weeks of stress and heartbreak and have answered the same questions countless times that I lacked the energy to fully explain the answers to their questions as they obviously already know the answers. Their waiting room was quiet (other that the mindless chatter of the employee and the random questions that were being asked), AC was making it very cool and comfortable, and i sat on a very comfortable recliner type seat. having stayed up late the night prior to prepare for some family festivities i found myself start to nod off as i waited for my child. An hour dragged by and i found myself struggling to stay awake as i sat there, more time passed by after that as well. Every so often i would be asked a question and answer it the best i could. Meanwhile my phone is being blown up by family members wanting to know where i was or when i’d be back as what i had told them was proving to be inaccurate. i would ask on the time of completion as i was assured when making the appointment it would be “about an hour” and was met with a shoulder shrug and a “we don’t really know”. At one point i apologized to the employee stating that i was very tired and exhausted and was having a hard time staying awake as i have been running ragged recently. she laughed and assured me that it was no big deal as she understood. Feeling safe with this employee i spoke to her some about personal matters regarding myself and later i sat there with my eyes closed as i waited. Finally my child came out and we stood leave. The officer that was observing came out and requested to speak to me one more time. I followed him to a room where he asked me more of the same questions that he had previously. He then asked me how i was doing which made me feel as if he really cared about what me and my family were going through. I felt safe around him and the facility in talking about such personal matters regardless of the akward conversations and lack of timelessness on their part. The officer then said i seems lathargic and my pupils were small. i explained to him about being tried as i did the worker he then told me he was going to have me step outside to do a field sobriety test as it appeared i was intoxicated and there were “concerns” by the staff I assumed. i was shocked to say the least as i followed him outside. Once outside my purse was taken from me and i was treated as if i was a criminal. An officer arrived and had me perform test and the did a breathalyzer which was negative. After the negative breathalyzer i was asked to do more test and eventually given my purse back and was told that i’m probably “mad” at them but they needed to make sure. they see that i am just exhausted and tired. Being mad is for children, i was humiliated and embarrassed and felt betrayed that i came to a place that was hard for me to after my family has went through what it has, lured into a false sense of security by the staff where i felt safe to close my eyes in their waiting room as i waited and i was hurt that it was easier and more believable to the WKAC staff that i would be drunk as opposed to tired like i told them i was and they assure me “no worries I completely understand” as they laughed. i gathered my children and was told in the car that the staff told them the officer was just “talking with me”. So in addition to all of that they LIED to my children that i was “just talking” with the officer when in reality I was outside in the hot sun completing a sobriety test as traffic drove by. i have never been more humiliated in my life. Already emotionally drained, made to feel safe with the staff there, and then have the cops called on me. i am ashamed that these are the people we have set in place to help and protect our children and community. Do NOT recommend. They will smile in your face and make you feel as if you can trust them and you can not. i had never given them a reason to feel that i was untrustworthy or lied to them so to be treated in such a way in an already scary and emotional situation was just shocking to me. JUST MY OPINION AND PERCEPTION OF HOW MY EXPERIENCE UNFOLDED.