Baptist Children’s Homes of North Carolina (BCH) officials are cooperating with authorities after a child care worker at Mills Home in Thomasville was arrested and charged with taking indecent liberties with a child.
BCH officials fired Phillip Shane Carter, 34, after charges were filed.
“This is something we take very seriously,” Jim Edminson, BCH institutional director for communications, told the Thomasville Times, which published the story Oct. 23.
Carter had worked for BCH for a year and a half with his wife as child care workers.
“We do extensive background checks and have a screening process for all new employees,” Edminson said. “We do criminal background checks and check professional and personal references. Ours is a pretty detailed screening … so an allegation like this is unexpected. It’s a shock.”
Michael C. Blackwell, president of Baptist Children’s Homes of North Carolina since 1983, said BCH is cooperating fully with authorities
“In the sheer volume of our work and the work of other organizations which suffer similar incidents, allegations of this sort do occur,” Blackwell said. “I hate it. I hate it probably worse than anything.
“But no matter what this single alleged incident implies to any doubters, I know that no one loves and cares for hurting children more or better than our staff at Baptist Children’s Homes. This allegation surfaces just as we are about to send staff into hundreds of North Carolina Baptist churches to tell them the good they are doing and to seek their support through the Thanksgiving Offering.
“My prayer is that no one will let this isolated allegation color their love for children and support of BCH.”
Baptist Children’s Homes serves more than 1,500 children and their families each year at facilities in 16 locations in North Carolina.