The Children's Home - Jesse Lee Home

Written by Mrs Myrtle Canterbury Hatten, the wife of the Rev. Charles T. Hatten, the superintendent of the Jesse Lee Home. She wrote about the original building that was used in Unalaska, Alaska from 1892 - 1925, but the sentiments ring true for the Seward location as well.

Dear old home facing the sea,
Weathered and gray and nothing to see;

Sagging at roof, the shingles gone,
Gaunt and unlovely, standing alone;
Windows broken, the floors worn through
Where the children played as children do;
Unfit to live in, ugly and old,
Rotten of sill and turning to mold;
You shake in the wind, let in the rain--
I close my eyes and see you again.

Bravely you stand there facing the sea,
Silent you are, yet speaking to me;
Each worn old spot on the splintered floors,
Each scratch and mar on the paintless doors,
each rusty hinge, broken window pane,
The holes in the roof that let in the rain;
Of everything that my mist eyes see
Are symbols, ever speaking to me
Of the home and haven you used to be,
To motherless boys and girls like me.

Wash day, scrub day, picnic day, any day-
My share of work, my share of play;
Then a bright warm fire, supper and bed,
A good night's blessing, a hand on my head,
A clean warm bed, sleep, sweet and sound,

Then a bright new day-Thus the years went round.
Struggling with work, romping in play,
Hard lessons to learn, kneeling to pray,
Dear house, now deserted, facing the sea,
You were a wonderful home to me.