Motel Children
Alone in her motel room, Angelica Littlefield, age 5, helps herself to a snack. Her mom died of an overdose, and now she and her brother are cared for by their dad and a string of baby sitters. By Daniel A. Anderson/Orange County Register
Motel Children
Like a deer caught in headlights, this boy cautiously peers around the corner to see who is coming as the headlights project two shadowy figures exchanging something in the night at the Golden Forest Inn. By Daniel A. Anderson/Orange County Register
Motel Children
Shut out of her room, Angelica Littlefield, age 5, describes an imaginary home with a pool, her own bedroom and two moms. Angelica's mother died of an overdose in the room behind her. She says she wants two moms because you need a backup in case one dies. By Daniel A. Anderson/Orange County Register
Motel Children
Anthony, 3, clings to half-brother Sean's new girlfriend, Kim, who doesn't live at the motel. Sean and Anthony's mother phones often from work to check on them. By Daniel A. Anderson/Orange County Register
Motel Children
Project Dignity volunteer Branda Stone is on the frontline with the motel children providing a positive adult role for kids like Sunny Gable, 10, at the Golden Forest Inn. By Daniel A. Anderson/Orange County Register
Motel Children
Brandi Stone comforts Angelica, age 5, and Jeffrey Littlefield, age 6, during a visit to the cemetery where the children's mother is buried. Brandi brought the children here to help them face the loss of their mother, who died of a drug overdose. By Daniel A. Anderson/Orange County Register
Motel Children
Inside a crowded motel room, a mirror becomes a place for 16-year-old Tawny Gable to express herself. Her dads is in jail, and she and her mom have taken responsibility for the household. 'I don't want to be one of these motel people when I grow up,' she says. By Daniel A. Anderson/Orange County Register
Motel Children
Abandoned shopping carts in a rain-soaked parking lot become pirate ships and dinosaurs. Many of the children in the motels don't have the money for a lot of toys. They make up for their lack of playthings with their imagination. By Daniel A. Anderson/Orange County Register
Motel Children
Regina Bartlett, age 8, plays grown-up in high heels in the Fire Station Motel parking lot. By Daniel A. Anderson/Orange County Register
Motel Children
Sunny Gable, age 10, shooting hoops in the motel parking lot says she wants to be a lawyer some day. 'I miss my dad,' she says. He's in jail. By Daniel A. Anderson/Orange County Register
Motel Children
A child's muddy hand prints mark a wall outside the laundry room at the Golden Forest Inn. Children growing up in motel communities are exposed to drugs, violence and poor nutrition. 'These kids break my heart,' says Pete Wann, Anaheim Police Department. By Daniel A. Anderson/Orange County Register
Motel Children
The Gables mark important dates — Sean's court date, the end of Dad's jail term — on a calendar in their room. Sean is Tawny Gable's boyfriend and neighbor. By Daniel A. Anderson/Orange County Register
Motel Children
Xavier Bartlett, 3, is on 'time out' while mom Sherry Meaux reads the help-wanted ads. She'll lose her room at the Fire Station motel if she doesn't get work right away. By Daniel A. Anderson/Orange County Register
Motel Children
Rick Smith Sr. and daughter Lovon gang up on Rick Jr. during a round of horseplay. Lovon is named for the phrase "love on." Rick Sr. drives a tow truck, sometimes for long stretches without any days off, to support his kids. By Daniel A. Anderson/Orange County Register
Motel Children
While Mom worries about rent money, Stephanie rushes outside to see a rainbow. There's a pot of gold at the end of every rainbow, she says. Stephanie, 6 and Regina, 8, Bartlett catch rain drops at dusk on the balcony of the Fire Station Motel in Garden Grove. By Daniel A. Anderson/Orange County Register
Motel Children
Regina swings at a punching bag at the Fire Station Motel. Her mom had to go to the hospital, and police came to see if Regina and her brother and sister were being cared for. By Daniel A. Anderson/Orange County Register
Motel Children
Branda Stone helps children study in the back of her vehicle at the Golden Forest motel parking lot in Anaheim. By Daniel A. Anderson/Orange County Register
Motel Children
Motel Children tabloid
Motel Children
Angelica Littlefield, age 5, mines a glass-strewn trash bin for 'treasures' left by a family that moved away. Jamie Carlin, age 13, eventually jumps in, too, to retrieve a toy puppy. By Daniel A. Anderson/Orange County Register