COEUR d'ALENE - Janie Givas was happy in her job as a marketing representative. Then, someone asked her a question.

"Are you doing with your life what you think God made you to do."

It made her stop, and yes, think.

"I really felt in my heart I wanted to do something more. My degree is in social work and I wanted to go back to doing something with children. I have always been a supporter of Children's Village."

So she picked up the phone and called Tinka Schaffer, Children's Village director.

"If in the next few years you hear of something that you think could use my skills, please let me know," Givas said.

The response was more than she expected.

"You're not going to believe this, but we've been looking for somebody to take over for me," Schaffer said.

"About two weeks later I was working here," Givas said.

That was about a year ago.

Today, Givas is development director of the Children's Village Foundation, the fundraising arm, and service provider for Children's Village Inc., which houses children in abusive situations.

Since its doors opened in Coeur d'Alene in 1990, Children's Village has cared for nearly 2,000 kids. Its impact on those children continues long after they leave.

"It's amazing. It truly is a family forever," Givas said.

How do things work here between you and your staff of 20?

Basically, here at Children's Village, we all do what it takes to make Children's Village operate. We all have different titles, some of us, three or four different titles. But basically, we do what it takes as a team to make things run.

What's your first year been like?

It has gone so fast. It is an amazing place to work. I have gotten so attached to so many children. We have been able to see a community that takes care of its children. There are so many good people, it's sometimes overwhelming to try and make sure we get them in the right place.

Children come with a lot of difficult stories. But those are the few people out there who do harm to the kids. Overwhelmingly it's been a really positive experience, seeing how great people can be. I've learned a lot about how many children we have in our community that need these resources. Even being a social worker years before, I was so surprised that we have such a need here at the Children's Village. We can take 12 children at a time, and we could easily double that if we had the funds to open up this house.

What kind of budget do you operate on?

Children's Village budget is about $475,000 to $500,000 a year. Ten percent of that comes from fees for service, that would include the state of Idaho paying for foster care. The rest comes from the community.

How are donations doing?

We have a great number of supporters, and some of those supporters can only do $10 a month. But the beauty of that is if there's 50 of them that do $10 a month, it adds up. We've had several very generous businesses in our community that have stepped forward to do what they can. Obviously, in total it's less than it has been in the past because of the economy, but people have really stepped up to do the best that they can. Our next fundraiser, the spring auction that's coming up, will probably really tell what the year's going to look like.

What's the best part of your job?

Getting to see the difference in the children's faces after they've been here for a couple of days, by far.

How about most challenging?

Knowing there are more children just like that who could use our services and knowing we need a lot more money to do that.

Do you become attached to the kids?

When I first started, there was a group of kids that came in, I was very attached to them. I would play with them, talk to them, and really got to know them. They ended up going home, it was a very happy story. I always thought, 'That's going to be the group of kids I remember forever.' And within a week there was another group of kids I was attached to. I think we all have ones that stick out in our heads, that we never forget. And sometimes, those kids come back. Sometimes kids go home for a few months and then come back and it's great that they know us and we know them, they grow up knowing this is part of their family.

Is this an emotional job?

Yes. It is an emotional job. I hope it never stops being an emotional job. There are house moms that have worked here 10 or 15 years and still get emotional sometimes when a child leaves, and that's because their heart is really in the right place. There have been times, knowing it's a happy situation the child is going home to, makes it a little easier. Sometimes we know the situation they're going home to is not happy, and it's tough to watch them walk out the door.

What are some basic reasons kids end up here?

There's a wide variety of things that can bring a child to Children's Village. One would be if Child Protective Services has removed them from the home because of neglect or abuse. We also provide shelter sometimes when parents are arrested. We also do private placement, so that means there are a lot of families in our community that are great families, but they just cannot take care of their kids right now. Sometimes that's for medical reasons or economic reasons or they're just not in a place mentally where they can be safe with their kids and they know they can bring them here at no cost and no judgment and we'll care for those kids as long as we need to.

When kids come in, do you have much notice?

Oftentimes we get about 10 minutes advance notice, just confirming that we have availability. Some of those kids come with nothing but a T-shirt on in the middle of the night, so we provide them with clothing and pajamas and toys and a blanket, all the things to make them comfortable.

What about families of the children? How do they play into this?

Our goal is to keep families together when we can. If you know a family that is in serious distress and the kids are in need, call us. We can sometimes help fulfill that need, or we can let them know we'll take the kids for a couple days. We're here for families that just need a little bit of help. We have a lot of resources through donations that we can sometimes spread out and make sure those kids get taken care of.

What's a typical day for you?

There is no typical day at Children's Village. Sometimes I start at 6:30 in the morning doing paperwork, grant writing, treatment plans, proposals and organizing fundraisers. And some days I come in and spend time with the kids, sometimes if they have a special need, finding out what that is and finding somebody in the community to provide that. Sometimes I'm out speaking to groups that need to know more about Children's Village.

What's one thing you would want people to know about Children's Village?

The children that come here are the kids that are your children's and grandchildren's classmates. They are part of this community, and every bit you do to help these kids, it makes a difference. It helps the rest of the community. It helps them succeed as they get older. I think it's important people realize that while this is a wonderful town with wonderful people, we still have the problem of severe child abuse and this is such a good alternative for families to have that available.

Is the abuse significant here?

Absolutely. People aren't aware of the extent of child abuse we see in our community, as well as the neglect. I think one of the trends I've seen in the kids that are coming is extreme neglect. In order for the state to take a child away from parents, it has to be a dangerous situation. So we're seeing children who aren't being fed, who are living in such filthy conditions that it's a hazard to their health, that they're not having an adequate place to sleep at night, that they are being left alone for very long periods of time. We simply need to be able to open up and take in more of those kids.

How can the public help?

There are so many ways the public can help. One of the ways obviously is financial donation. Another way is to come see us, come take a tour, let me show what we do here, so they can look at special skills they have and how they can help. We have volunteers who come in and play with kids. We have people who come in and help with fundraisers. There's so many different ways people can help. I just encourage them to give me a call and come take a tour.

Is this the best job you've ever had?

This is the best job I've had by far.