Forgot to add that my friend barely makes $10/hr( and she spent over 2 grand to get her CNA)

Another former friend of mine worked as an aide to a CP client and was making $9.50/hr no benefits or sick days and working very erratic and overwhelming hrs.

Lynne..

*STANDING OVATION *

I have a friend who works at a county nursing home/mental health facility here in NJ( a facility which I will not mention but which has a pretty bad rep here in Northern NJ). The bad rep is due to MANY of the reasons you mentioned: no money, low paying jobs, understaffing, ect.
My friend works as an activity aide/CNA and her patients( be they the geriatric patients or the MH patients) are her world. Although she freely admits that there are gross instances of neglect and wrongdoing, in the main, everyone cares about the residents and patients and tries to do what they can to brighten lives. (As is so often the case many of these people are without families and have been here for years. This is one of the largest hospitals in NJ and since the closing of the majority of state hospital beds, it has been pressed into service to care for the remaining long-term psych patients who cannot function in a group home setting)

LadyMaggie
Who plans to put her money where her loquatious mouth is and volunteer @ said facility in the near future

Could these have been donated "gently used" suits for use by the clients who were being prepaired by their treatment teams to return to outside? To teach proper dressing, job interview skills and such?
( reason i ask is that I have a friend who works @ a local developmental/mental health facility here in Northern NJ and they are always collecting gently used business casual clothes for patients returning to the ourside world and jobs)

Hmm those look a hell of a lot better than the suits my last ex boyfriend has in his closet!!!

This is just disgusting, sensless waste. One of my friends has a couch quite similar to that in his office. The wood is ornately carved and the seat backs/cushions are velvet stuffed with I THINK horsehair( whatever it is, it's damned uncomfortable to sit on!). It belonged to his great grandmother and dates from somewhere in the 19th century. The couch in this room could be the twin of this one (esp since his mother's family originally came from New England)

Nonetheless, Motts, thank you for capturing it for us yet again! ;)