President’s Report

President's Report
July 1, 2010

We have recently had some exciting developments in our capacity to impact the lives of children and families. For a long time, our vision for Northwood has been to become a complete children and family services agency – in other words, to offer a full array of programs that enable us to provide exactly the right level of service at the right time. For us, that meant focusing on developing effective programs designed to strengthen and preserve families so that children can live successfully at home, perform well in school, and contribute positively to their
communities.

The day treatment programs that we offer have been very successful in that endeavor. Last year, our three day treatment programs – Merritt Creek, Chester Creek, and the Little Learner’s Enrichment Center, served over 100 local children in programs highly regarded for their quality and positive outcomes.

Now we are poised to offer expanded services including in-home, aftercare and outpatient therapy, that will enable us to provide a much more comprehensive constellation of care. We have trained and credentialed staff in place and the new Community Services Center that opened in 2008 from which to operate. We have been approved to offer a full array of community based programs, and have the
support of important stakeholders in our community and our region. Auditors from the Department of Human Services, after an intensive review of our day treatment programs, described them as exemplary and model programs in the state! It is a great launching pad for program development. We have identified two students, about to be discharged from residential care, as our first aftercare candidates. I’ll keep you posted how these programs evolve.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, the eloquent words of one child whose life we have impacted. I wanted to share with you some thoughts of one of our students. She approached me awhile back and asked if I might want to put her feelings in the newsletter. I thought you might be interested in her perspective.

“I am writing this to say thank you for the following reasons: Thanks for never giving up on me during my struggles. I want to say thank you for taking time out of your day to sit and talk with me. Thanks for believing in me and giving me the assurance that I can make it through another day, that this too shall pass. I am writing this thank you because all of you have helped me in your own ways to get me to this point – it has been one year since I have engaged in self harm to cope with my feelings and emotions. I feel I can continue to keep myself safe. I could not have gotten to this point in my life without your help. I know I will face challenges and obstacles each day, but I know that I am in the loving, caring hands of the people at Northwood. Thank you for believing in me. Thank you, everyone, for all your help. Sincerely safe, —————.”

Guiding troubled children to a brighter future, one at a time.

Richard Wolleat
President & CEO