Rocky Hill Parent & Peer Specialists

11/19/2025

I’ve been sharing many of Officer Gomez’s posts. If you have kids with a cell phone or who will be getting a cell phone his page is a MUST follow. He provides so much great information.

11/19/2025

🎲 Spot the Predator — Family Game Night Edition 🎲

Parents, ready for a game that’ll open your eyes faster than caffeine?

How to Play:
1️⃣ Open your child’s TikTok, Snapchat, or Instagram.
2️⃣ Start scrolling through the unknown adults liking or commenting on your kid’s posts.
3️⃣ Try to guess which ones might be predators.
(Hint: if they’re a 37-year-old from another state calling your 13-year-old “pretty,” you’re probably on the right track.)

Cheat Code:
Head over to your kid’s private messages and see which random adults are chatting with them.

If you find a few, congrats — you’ve just “won” the game.

This game can be played on almost any social media platform — but unlike Monopoly, this one has real stakes.

Good luck, have fun, and maybe… delete a few apps when you’re done.

Happy Parenting,
Officer Gomez

11/19/2025

YES! 1,000 times YES!!! It’s not like a kid trying a cigarette in our day. It’s much more addictive and has worse effects on the lungs.

Not as Easy as You Think

Parents—please understand: the ni****ne addiction kids are facing through vapes is intense and very real.

If the school calls to say your child was caught va**ng, take it seriously. This isn’t something a few drug classes or a short phone grounding will fix. Va**ng is not a phase—it’s a powerful addiction that sticks.

From the teens I’ve personally spoken with, about 95% of the kids I’ve caught va**ng are still va**ng. That should concern every parent reading this.

If you have a middle school / high schooler, do a quick backpack and car check. You might be surprised what you find.

Va**ng is not harmless. It’s a life-altering decision that affects your child—and eventually, their future family. Please treat it that way.

— Officer Gomez

11/19/2025

A good list of skills to have before you move out of the house.

🧠 Personal Responsibility & Mindset
- Wakes up on time without being told
- Takes responsibility for mistakes (no blaming)
- Manages time and priorities
- Understands how to set and reach goals
- Knows how to handle stress and frustration
- Can advocate for themselves (with teachers, bosses, landlords, etc.)
- Understands consent and personal boundaries
- Practices self-control around money, food, screens, and emotions

💰 Financial Skills
- Knows how to create and follow a budget
- Understands the difference between needs and wants
- Can pay bills on time (rent, utilities, phone, etc.)
- Balances a bank account or uses an app responsibly
- Understands credit, interest, and debt
- Can file taxes or knows where to get help
- Saves money consistently
- Knows how to read a paycheck and understand deductions

🏠 Home & Life Skills
- Does laundry properly
- Cleans a bathroom and kitchen
- Keeps their living space organized and sanitary
- Basic home maintenance (changing a lightbulb, plunging a toilet, etc.)
- Understands how to shop for and cook balanced meals
- Can plan meals and grocery shop on a budget
- Understands how to manage trash and recycling
- Can safely use household cleaning products and appliances

👥 Social & Relationship Skills
- Communicates respectfully (in person and online)
- Can resolve conflicts calmly
- Maintains healthy boundaries in friendships and dating
- Understands roommate etiquette
- Shows gratitude and appreciation
- Understands when and how to ask for help
- Manages online reputation and privacy

🚗 Practical & Safety Skills
- Knows basic car maintenance (check oil, tire pressure, etc.)
- Understands basic first aid and emergency procedures
- Can navigate public transportation
- Understands personal safety (locks, situational awareness, etc.)
- Can handle medical appointments, prescriptions, and insurance forms
- Knows how to protect personal information and avoid scams

💼 Work & Education Skills
- Can complete a job application or résumé
- Shows up on time and dresses appropriately for work
- Communicates professionally with supervisors
- Understands taxes, pay periods, and benefits
- Balances work, school, and personal life responsibly
- Takes initiative and solves small problems independently

11/19/2025

Does your child play Roblox? I know many do. It causes so many problems. This game targets kids.

In seven days my young alter ego is cyberbullied and attacked while exploring clubs, casinos and horror games, all with parental controls in place. Is the platform safe for children – or an ‘X-rated pa******le hellscape’?

11/13/2025

11/11/2025

Tech Tip. If you pay for your child’s phone you have to right to look at it anytime.

11/02/2025

This! It’s a struggle I face everyday. It’s so hard when all I can do is be there for them, listen, and pray. The “them” are the parents who have adopted from foster AND the struggling bio parents. I support both.

Here’s a truth nobody wants to admit.

The system doesn’t exist to heal kids.
It exists to move them. To process them. To check boxes and fill files.

And if that doesn’t make your stomach turn, I don’t know what will.

We say “best interest of the child” while dragging cases out for years.
We preach “family preservation” while barely giving parents what they need to survive.
We claim “children are resilient” while shuffling them from house to house, calling it stability.

Let me say it again: trauma doesn’t wait.
It doesn’t care if the system is slow or broken.
It seeps in. It shapes the way a child sees the world. And it doesn’t go away when they turn eighteen.

Meanwhile, foster parents are expected to do the impossible.
Show up. Be trauma-informed. Keep perfect records. Never slip. Never fail.
And the system keeps moving like nothing matters.

Another caseworker quits. Another visit rescheduled. Another six months added to a case.
“Oh well,” they say.
But it’s never “oh well” for the child waiting. Or the parent trying to survive. Or the foster family scrambling to hold it all together.

This is not healing.
This is not justice.
This is not mercy.
This is not God’s heart.

Because God is near to the brokenhearted.
He puts lonely children in families.
He commands us to care for the orphan, the widow, the vulnerable.
And this system we’ve let run unchecked? It doesn’t look like Him.

So yes, I speak up.
I say the hard things. I grieve out loud. I make people uncomfortable.
Silence doesn’t save kids. Silence only protects a broken system.

And if you’re watching and thinking, “Not all foster parents feel this way…”
They do. They just don’t have the courage to say it.
They’re afraid of judgment, of being told to smile and follow the rules, of rocking the boat.

Not me.
I will not sit down. I will not sugarcoat. I will not stop.

One day I will stand before God.
I won’t answer for how well I fit into the system.
I will answer for how fiercely I loved His children.
How loudly I fought for them.
How boldly I refused to look away.

They matter. Every single one of them.
And I will not be quiet about it.

11/01/2025

Types of Trauma: A Teaching Guide

Big-T Trauma
-Definition: Major, life-threatening events.
-Examples: Natural disasters, assault, war.
-Impact: PTSD, anxiety, depression, hypervigilance.

Little-t Trauma
-Definition: Less extreme but emotionally distressing.
-Examples: Divorce, bullying, job loss.
-Impact: Low self-worth, chronic stress, emotional dysregulation.

Acute Trauma
-Definition: A single shocking event.
-Examples: Car accident, sudden death.
-Impact: Intense short-term reactions, possible PTSD.

Chronic Trauma
-Definition: Ongoing exposure to distress.
-Examples: Domestic violence, long-term illness.
-Impact: Emotional numbness, trust issues, physical symptoms.

Developmental Trauma
-Definition: Trauma during early childhood.
-Examples: Neglect, abuse, unstable caregiving.
-Impact: Attachment issues, learning difficulties, emotional instability.

Complex Trauma
-Definition: Multiple, prolonged traumatic experiences.
-Examples: Childhood abuse, trafficking.
-Impact: Identity confusion, emotional dysregulation, dissociation.

Cultural & Historical Trauma
-Definition: Trauma experienced collectively by a group due to systemic oppression, colonization, slavery, genocide, Examples:
- Indigenous communities: Forced removal, boarding schools.
- African American communities: Slavery, segregation.
- Jewish communities: Holocaust.
- Refugees: War, persecution.
- Asian Americans: Internment camps.
- Latinx communities: Immigration trauma.
-Impact: Intergenerational grief, identity loss, mistrust of institutions.
-Healing: Cultural revitalization, community healing, storytelling, advocacy.

Discussion Prompts
- Which types of trauma are most relevant to your work or community?
- How might trauma show up in behavior or relationships?
- What does trauma-informed care look like in practice?

Support & Healing
- Trauma-informed therapy (e.g., TF-CBT, EMDR)
- Mindfulness & grounding techniques

and PTSD is in Innisfail, QLD, Australia.

10/31/2025