P.
I am so sorry to hear of your terrible treatments at different hospitals, Gaebler really was hell to say the least, a lot of mental,verbal and physical abusive as well as sexual abusive went on there. I understand everything you say about how you feel and not be able to be touched, When you go thru something that horrific it's hard to trust anyone, even your family and loved ones, it must certainly changes the person you are, it's not your fault, it's the Dept of Mental Healths fault and them thinking they had the right to abuse us they way they did and drug us as well. I hop e that someday you will be able to come to terms with all that has happened to you so you can show the world and everyone who counted you out that you are better than they say you are and they can kiss your ass......If you ever want to talk, I do have a facebook account, you just have to friend request me, my name is Michelle D.Woods and I also have pictures and videos of Gaebler on my fb.....

Hello, I had a kid named Danny on my ward, it wad Ward D, what years was your brother there? maybe I can help you understand why he was there if it's the same Danny that I know and that I still know to this day....I am sorry that you had such a horrible experience there, I did too, we all did, it was a horrible place for kids to say the least, as for the girls sex jokes, I never heard any but, I do know that girls were being raped there by the male staff members, it was very easy to do since they had all the hidden rooms and keys and we had to trust them....I hope someday you can overcome your anger and be able to be happy...Do not let that place and it's staff members ruin you, ruin the person that you are and can be, if you do that, then that means the won the war and I know you don't want that. I know it's hard as hell to try and put your life together after being in such a horrible, physically abusive and mentally abusive place but, you can do it, you just have to tell yourself that you are worth it and JG you are worth it, if you ever want to talk look me up on facebook my name is Michelle Woods-Godfroy....



Sorry the above message was for JG, NOT FROM JG, I SCREWED UP THE NAME SLOT, SORRY JG....

John,
You are absolutely right, we do all have a bond, no one can take that away from us, the bestfriends I ever had were from there...

Boiler1220,
Hello my dear friend, so happy that we met and hung out a few times, you are right at the time we didn't matter, but, it's high time that we make the people who did this to us pay for their crimes and let the world know just what kind of dept of mental heath system we have and then maybe parents will think twice about giving their children away to the state. It makes me wonder, when they were children how were they treated? I don't think I will ever have closure completely, to much happened to us in there to have that kind of closure, but, we are better people and we proved to the world that we are worthy and that we do matter and that they didn't break us. life is too short and so precuous and so glad that you are now my friend and that you are doing well....

Mr.Jody Mcmillian,
Hello there, I was a patient there from 82-84 and I was on Ward D, the staff members at the time were, Jack,Melody,Joanna, Harvey, Willie,Suzanne, Elaine and I can't remember the other ones, but, I so remember Tom Heathwood, he thought he was the cats ass, cause he was the head of the place and he really made us kids out to be monster, he would give the staff, and dr's orders on what to give us for meds and how to treat us, he was a scumbag, and I so wish I could find him and treat him the way we were treated. We were not monsters, we were children, and the reason some of us had problems was because our parents were screwed up, but, it's so much easier for our parents to just blame us then themselves and give us away cause it was to hard for them to deal with us. I am so sorry that you have had such a horrible life, I can't imagine starting at the age of 17yrs old and needing a pacemaker, that is horrible and now you have to have your 8th one put in, that is terrible, but, I am glad that you are still alive. I am so so so sorry that you had to raise yourself, that is terrible, what the hell is wrong with your parents? sorry to say that, but, you were just a child. My mother is actually the one who called the dept of mental health on me, and signed me away to the state from the age of 11yrs old-16yrs old when she got custody of me back and I came home to live , I was only home for just about 3yrs before I moved out a month after I turned 18yrs old and I never moved back home and now I am 41yrs old, have a wonderful husband and 2 children, 2 daugghters, one ijust turned 17yrs old & the other one is 6yrs old, I have had a tough life but, I promised myself that I would be the best person I could be and not let people cut me down and tell me the kind of person they think I am. For the longest time I hated my mother for putting me in Gaebler, but, I am older now and life is to short for hate, I am now extremely close with my mother and we see each other all the time, she actually lives a couple streets over from me. It took a long time for me to forgive my mother, I got my records and confronted her with them and she had no choice but, to tell me thet truth. As, for the building being gone, it's a shame, they should have put it to good use, like a childrens center, like a day center for troubled kids and have us patients be the staff because we would have known exactly how to handle them and treat them, medicince makes things worse, I do not believe that it helps at all. I wish you the best with your pacemaker going in for the 8th time, and hope that you are doing well and that your life is so much better. Allwe can do is prove to society that we are not as bad as we were made out to be, we are human, and humans make mistakes, some worse than others, but, that doesn't mean that us kids needed to be locked up, drugged, secluded, tied to a bed naked, ;locked int he shower alone, locked int he bathroom, and locked in the building, we shouldn't have had to earn priveledges to go outside, even then, you were still in a locked fench area, unless you were lucky to go get outside priveledges to go on the nature trail walks to Rocky Meadow, which by the way is still there, my husband and I go there every week,, and we go to the chrildren's cemetery. I have tons of pictures of Gaebler, inside and out and vieos, if you want to see them request me on facebook Michelle Woods-Godfroy. I hope you have a good day...

John,
You are right, the demise of the building being taken down doesn't change what happened in there, but, for some reason the dept of mental health feels that with the building and a good portion of the records being gone, that they covered their tracks of the abuse that we incured in Gaebler, but, you can't hide what went on in there, if enough patients come forward we can do something about this...

Belmonster,
Hello again, trust me when I tell you, they are going to put up condos, I know this for a fact, as for the Fernald, they will probably sell it to Gann Academy again, cause they want more space, I know alot of what goes on in Waltham because I have lived here since I was 11yrs old and my girls are in the Waltham public school system, one is at Plympton and in Kindergarten and the other one started in kindergarten at the Plymptom,then went to the McDevitt & now is a Junior at the High School, I do get all the notices on buildings and house being put up, gone to the meetings about the congestion and adding more condos and houses in waltham and the zoning board meetings, so yes, I know alot. I am not saying they will put them up anytime soon, but, trust me, that is what is going to go up there....Anyway, not to sound rude, but, who are you? where you ever a patient at Gaebler?

Estepani Lerran,
If you want you can request me on facebook and see my pictures and videos of Gaebler, my name is Michelle Woods Godfroy

Mr Death,
I was a patient there from 5284 and on Ward D, and I live in Waltham, Mass and have since I was 11yrs old when I went there, and I can tell you that yes the building is gone, I have pictures of it on my facebook of you want to see them, the City of Waltham paid Testa Corp to take the building down because of the high levels of asbestos and lead paint, they did want to put it to good use like a childrens center but, it was going to cost way to much, they will eventually build on that property land, and it will most likely be condos. I have 2 girls in the Waltham school system and know everything that just about that goes on in the city. Gaebler was a sad place for us kids to be in, the abuse we endured was unbearable and no kid should have ever had to go thru that kind of abuse, I am appalled that the dept of mental health thought this was a good place for chldren, they actually encouraged the abuse, sick sick sick people. I am on facebook if you want to see the picutes, Michelle Woods-Godfroy and request to be my friend. I also have videos of the place, and I have been at Gaebler with Boiler1220 quite a few times, inside and out and watched he demised of the building be taken down, and somehow I thought if the building was gone, I would have clousure, but, that's not the case, I feel like a part of me is gone with that building and wish they didn't take it down, they should have paid the money and done something good with it for children like they were going to so us kids that were patients there could see that we weren't forgetten and that we did actually matter.

Boiler,
you are so my friend I wish I had when I was growing up, we could have taken on the world,,,,,but, it's never to late......

Boiler my friend,
you sound crazy? Never, you are probably right, I do think they drugged the kids so they could see how they could conttol them into doing whatever they wanted, it was all about control, and as for the dentist, I know I never went to the dentist when I was there, you are not crazy. well, maybe to me cause I know you and you are such a nice guy, but, for real in this world, by no means are you crazy....

Belmonster,
Hello there and good morning, Yes, you actually are tresspassing the second u step on the grounds, my husband and I were at the bottom of the hill as you enter and the police told us were tresspassing and could have us arrested and my van impounded, but, I got lucky since they looked my name and my husbands name up and we didn't have a criminal record or even any tickets or accidents, so he let us go, I used the excuse I was just turning around to go down the street the opposite way I came.....I do have mixed feelings, I think they should have done something good with the place, I don't think taking it down was the thing to do, I think they should have made a children's center out of it where kids who do have problems can go there and talk to people and other kids but, not in a locked environment, like a day center or something like that and also that kids who were patients be the ones to run the place cause we would know exactly how to deal with trouble kids and teens and know what to say to them and help them and not cut them down, drug them and lock them up,,,,If the city of Waltham who only aquired the building in 2005 thought by taking it down it would hide what went on in their, they are sadly mistaken, I will get my voice heard on that, you can't hide that kind of abuse and crap, eventually I will find someone to listen to me, and the Dept of Mental Health will get in trouble, they said they called it for budget cut reasons, that's not what happened, my boyfriend got the living shit kicked out of him in hiis sleep by 2 sraff members to the point where he ended up in the hospital and almost died and his parents took the place and staff to court and they won and he never had to go back there again, one of the staff members actually called his parents and said you need to get here something happened to your son, then they changed all their policies, how you took showers and went to the bathrrom and added more outside activites and they never secluded a child again, they had a lot of lawsuits against them and I know some of them are probably still pending, it was a horrible place to grow up in as a child......

JG,
I agree with you about our parents never being allowed in our rooms, I don't know why that was, when I was there 82-84, they had to visit us downstairs where you actually first come into the building, my parents were never allowed on the ward I was on, I was on D, it was really strange, I think the staff knew that if they let the parents up to see our ward and bedrooms and what kind of living conditions we live in then there would have been a lot more law suits then already going on at the time,...but, now the building is gone, it's been taken down, nothing left but rubble and debris, Tues 11/16/10 it was completely down...

Just wanted to let everyone know that the building is now gone, it has been taken down and demolished, all that is left is rubble and piles and piles of debris....

I just wanted to let everyone know that Gaebler is now down, the entire building has completely down on Tuesday 11/16/10, now it's just a pile rubble. It looks scary, I didn't get pictures cause the police are parolling it all the time and already got caught once but, was able to talk my way out of it, even thou I wasn't near ther building I was at the end of the driveway and the sign says no tresspassing, so I was lucky I could have gotten arrested. Anyway, I am going to try this weekend and take pictures of it all down and what is left of the rubble and piles of bricks and crap. I will keep everyone updated to the best of my knowledge....

Jace, when were you there? I was there 82-84, the City of Waltham is not the issue, they just bought the building in 2005, I know this for a face because I live in Waltham and have most of my life, the Dept of Mental Health owned it til then, the ciry of Waltham did want to make a children's center out of it, but, because the asbestos and lead paint were high, it was to expensive to remodel, so it was cheaper for them to tear it down, cause the building is hazardous. I agree, it shouldn't be torn down, that something good should be made from the horror that we had to endure and that someone needs to tell someone what went on in there, I emailed channel 5 and I never heard from them. If you request me as a friend on facebook you can all my pictures of the place as I have been in the building several times and took pics and videos. I also heard a lot of the kids that were there never made it to the 20th birthday. The staff I feel need to take responsibility for their actions of the treatment that gave us, as well all the dept of mental health and all the dr's who drugged us and every other thing. I hope that you are doing well in your life now, I am, I am happily married with 2 beautiful girls, one is 16yrs old and the one ts 6yrs old. I am going to try and get up there today as the rain here has stopped, you can't drive up there anymore, there is way to many police patrolling the place all the time as the building is all opened now and a danger to society, so we my husband and I have been doing is going to Rock Meadow on the Belmont side of the place, the same street Mclean's Hosp is on and walking thru the woods to get there......I will post here and give an update as to if I did or didn't get there and what the place looks like now.......

Richard, yes, it's very creepy, and yes, the cops are patrolling the place all the time, we almost got caught today but, just ran into the woods on a trail......the smell is from people partying and pissing in it but, also from it being opened and it's been raining and they had to use cleaning solution to get rid of the asbestos.....You crack me up with the Freddy Kruegger boiler room, cause that is exactly what I thought when I first saw it......So much to say butl totally exhausted so I am going to go for now, I have to work in the morning and get my girls off to school, we will chat soon, feel free to email me on facebook or leave me comments on my wall there, cause they will go right to my phone and I have my cell with me at work, I can't talk on my cell at work, but, I can email and go on line on it....have a good night and we will chat soon,,,,,,

Richard, the whole buidling was incased in asbestos, there is a ton of it to say the least, and they had to get rid of that first before they could even start taking it down, but, I did go there today and it's a friggin mess, a lot of it has come down, but, the structure is still standing but, I give it a day or 2 and it will be down......

Richard,
I know for a fact, since I am a resident of Waltham most of my life since I was at Gaebler in 82-84 and they just wanted the building down because there were to many kids getting in it and partying and trashing the place and all the asbestos was out in the open and getting into the air and before it gets to the residents that live near the building they are taking it down, It should be down this week if the weahter cooperates, It's all gutted out and scary looking, my husband and I were just there we walked thru the woods to get to it cause the police are patrolling it since you can easily get into the building now even thou there is a fench around, cause honestly, I have been in it a dozen times in the past few months when it was just boarded up and now all the windows have been knocked out and the asbestos taking out and they even knocked out some of the structure where the bottom floor doors are so you can now just walk in, I am going to go up there today if the weather here cooperates, it's been raining and I have been sick the past few days and haven't been able to get out of bed until this am. Yes the cops are everywhere now looking for tresspassers but, there is such a way around it, I know the woods like the back of my hands and that is how you go around it. Request me on facebook Michelle Woods-Godfory I have a lot of pictures from being inside the building and outside on the grounds and took video's as well....I will keep you and everyone updated as much as I can,,,,,,

Vik23
Hello, if you want to see pictures of the place request me on facebook Michelle Woods-Godfroy, I have a lot of pictures on their and some viideo's that I just took of the place, the building is being taken down, I want to say within a week, the whole thing is completely gutted out, you can see right thru the place from one end to the other, it's freaky, there was a lot of asbestos and lead paint that we all lived in when we were there and never knew it. I don't know who you are cause I don't know your real name but, just request me on facebook,,,Hope you are doing well since you got out of that horrible place....

No, the building is still standing, but, not for long, I was just there a day ago and the whole building is gutted but, the structure itself is still standing,but, I give it a week and it will be gone, I live in Waltham and I go by it almost everyday, if you request me to be a friend on facebook Michelle Woods-Godfroy you can see my pictures of Gaebler and my vidoeos. I have been in the building several times over the past several months. Richard if you want to talk to me about this place request me on facebook, if you don't have a facebook then you sign up an account cause that is where all my Gaebler pictures and videos are.......