Visions Newsletter Summer & Fall Edition October 2013
From Mark’s Desk As I’ve moved through the area in the last few months, many of you have asked me how all the budget cuts, federal shutdown, and political atmosphere affects Eliada, and more importantly, whether or not Eliada is doing any advocacy around those issues. My reply is that first and foremost it is our job is to provide the very best care possible for the children we serve. We are, however, active members of Benchmarks, North Carolina’s statewide alliance of human service agencies, and the North Carolina Center for Non-Profits. I receive regular updates regarding state fiscal and policy issues, information about proposed changes, and issues discussed in the Legislature, and I respond when I believe it directly affects Eliada and our partner organizations. You can learn about how legislation is affecting the children of North Carolina by following one or both of these organizations.
As we move into an uncertain political future, the most important thing you can do is continue to support Eliada with your gift. In a couple of weeks, you’ll be asked to give to Eliada during our fall Annual Fund Campaign. These gifts will not only support our Outdoor Living Space and Native Garden project, but will provide for the day-to-day operations. We are deeply grateful for our donors, especially those who have been giving year after year. Every dollar given further reduces the impact of the political climate on our children. Thank you for caring for Eliada’s children. Sincerely,
Mark C. Upright, J.D., M.B.A. President, CEO Attorney at Law
Save the Date! Christmas Tea
Eliada’s HomeComing weekend
December 7, 2013 2 PM – 4 PM at The Inn on Biltmore
May 17-18, 2014 • 10 Year RISE Reunion • Annual Alumni Reunion • Inaugural Eliada School of Trade Arts Breakfast • Eliada Annual Dinner
Golf Tournament May 2, 2014
Sterrett
Emmanuel
Xavi
Eliada’s Child Development Center Where Everyone is a Star Sterrett was six months old before he started being able to sit up, even using special “boppy pillows”. At eleven months, he was still not crawling. When Xavi came to Eliada, the back of his head was flat from lying in the same position, which meant he didn’t turn his head much. He didn’t smile, coo, babble, or roll. Emmanuel started Eliada at seven weeks old. He has congenital issues with both feet and developmental delays due to Down syndrome. While all the babies in the Child Development Center get lots of hugs, kisses, and holding, Eliada staff knew that Sterrett, Xavi, and Emmanual needed extra helpings of love and attention. Eliada’s staff took turns holding Xavi and Sterrett as much as possible. They talked to the boys constantly, smiling, playing, and interacting as much as possible. Foster grandmothers filled in when staff were busy with other children. Eliada staff worked hand-in-hand with the Child Development Service Agency, who came in to do physical
therapy with Emmanuel, and worked hard to make the most of the services that agency provided. Very quickly, Xavi and Sterrett started coming out, and began smiling and babbling. Emmanuel is a very determined little boy and has lots of smiles for everyone. His large motor skills will take longer to develop, but he is making great progress. All three boys are moving toward their targets, and excelling in their development. We’ve been providing services for children like Sterrett, Xavi, and Emmanuel, but now it’s official! Eliada’s Child Development Center now has three classrooms with a Special Needs license, which means that there are extra hands, more equipment, and specially trained staff available to help Sterrett, Xavi, Emmanuel, and other special needs children reach their targets. If you know a child that would benefit from being in our Child Development Center, contact Tracey McCrain at (828) 254-5356, ext. 336, or visit www.Eliada.org for more information.
Eliada and Autism A New Classroom for Children Who See, Hear, and Learn Differently Did you know that Autism is not a single disorder? Autism is more properly called Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). The term “spectrum” refers to the wide range of symptoms, skills, impairments, or disabilities that children with ASD can have. Some children are mildly impaired, but others are severely disabled.
physical makeup of the brain is affected, while other research shows an imbalance in chemicals.
No two children with ASD are the same. It impacts communication, social interaction, and behavior differently in every child. ASD affects a child’s ability to understand what they see, hear, and sense, which makes relating to other people, objects, and events difficult. It can also make classroom learning very difficult.
In October, Eliada added a small, individualized ASD classroom to our Eliada Academy. The Academy is a day treatment program serving high-risk students who have a history of emotional or behavioral problems, and who need structured treatment in conjunction with their education.
No one knows exactly what causes autism. Researchers believe that genetics play a key role, but there the agreement ends. Some research shows that the
Whether the number of children with ASD is growing, or more children are being diagnosed correctly, or both, Eliada is stepping in to help these children obtain an education that meets their needs.
If you know a child that would benefit from being part of Eliada Academy, contact Brandi McKenzie at (828) 254-5356, ext. 323, or visit www.Eliada.org for more information.
Eliada and Asheville Grown A Natural Partnership Just in case you haven’t heard, Eliada’s Annual Corn Maze is the largest in WNC and the only one where 100% of the proceeds benefit children. This year, Eliada partnered with the Asheville Grown Business Alliance (AGBA), the creators of the Love Asheville campaign to create the Corn Maze design. A giant heart, with the “Love Asheville Give Local” slogan created the maze trails. AGBA’s mission is to support independent, locally-owned businesses in the community. They are proud to say that independent, locally-owned businesses cycle three times more money back into the local economy, and give greater support to a community’s non-profit and civic needs. Eliada is proud to partner with AGBA to highlight our local roots and promote other local businesses in our region.
This year’s maze has been a huge fundraising success and great fun for children and families! Visit www.fieldsoffun.org for more information.
Expanding Eliada’s Continuum of Care Sometimes, fragile children who successfully complete Eliada’s Residential Treatment program (PRTF) lose some of the gains they’ve made while here because upon completion, they have to move. Eliada’s Residential Treatment program provides the highest level of treatment available outside a hospital for children with psychological or behavioral issues. Currently, there is not a lower level of treatment available on campus.
As always, Eliada staff is working to eliminate anything that adversely impacts the children in our care. To help children who might be in this situation, Eliada is developing a small new four-bed Level III Residential Treatment program on campus. By having a lower level of treatment available on campus, students will have an extra step to help them transition out of treatment and back to their parents or foster parents. Students who no longer need to live in our Residential Treatment program can still live on campus and attend school at Eliada Academy (Day Treatment) program, which offers a 4-to-1 student to teacher ratio. The new living quarters will be finished over the winter, and hopefully be occupied by early spring.
To make a contribution toward this or any other Eliada programs, contact Tami Ruckman at (828) 254-5356, ext. 306 or visit www.Eliada.org.
Eliada has expanded its Corn Maze to include weekday field trips for local and regional schools. Children from day care centers, city and county schools, home schools, and afterschool programs have all participated in the field trip program!
Students can follow the anti-bullying story through the Spookley maze to learn respect and valuing others, go through the Ciderella maze, and even make a 3D paper apple. These thank you notes were made by students from Estes Elementary after their field trip!
Eliada is Going Green! Four of Eliada’s five cottages, plus the Chapel, Gym, and Administrative building form a ring around the heart of the campus. This area, known as the Quad, sees a lot of traffic from children, staff, and the occasional barn animal. While there are concrete paths and trees, there are no benches, picnic tables, electricity, or gardens to encourage outdoor work and play. Eliada’s next capital project is the renovation of our Quad into an outdoor living, dining, and meeting space. The project adds double French doors and a large patio onto our cafeteria, features benches, picnic tables, a pergola, and adds colorful tile entryways to each cottage. The concrete sidewalks will be removed to create a seamless sea of green grass, and several large Native Gardens will feature over 150 different indigenous plants.
HOW YOU CAN HELP! You can sponsor a garden or other portion of the project, or purchase a colorful tile for one of the cottage entryways. For more details on how you can be part of Eliada’s Quad Project, contact Tami Ruckman at (828) 254-5356, ext. 306 or at truckman@Eliada.org
Renovation plans for the Quad include turning it into an outdoor living, dining and meeting space.
Welcome New ESTA Students! Every day in the United States, more than 70 children age out of foster care. These young men and women leave foster care not because they were reunited with their families or adopted, but simply because they are too old to stay in care.
Without family or other dependable adults to rely on for assistance, these young people will almost certainly experience homelessness, joblessness, addiction, illness, incarceration, welfare dependency, early childbearing, and sexual and physical victimization. While many children’s homes around the country provide housing, most simply support the child while they enter an outside vocational school or college. Even those statistics are grim; most students are not prepared to enter higher education. Eliada staff watched child after child fail at this model.
ESTA students in front of new tennis courts
Two years ago, Eliada’s School of Trade Arts (ESTA) was born. ESTA provides housing and on-campus vocation school for youth aging out of foster care. In July, ESTA began its second year of programming with six students. These students have been working on getting their Serve-Safe Certification, taking beginning level culinary courses, and working in our campus Dining Hall. With the basics down, the first class of students are now gaining real world experience with internships at local restaurants and hospitality centers like Homegrown, Pasta Fasta, Deerfield Retirement Center, DoubleTree Hotels, Chestnut, and Corner Kitchen. Internships help students develop professional contacts, learn to handle a fast-paced professional setting, and continue developing skills toward a lifelong living wage job. ESTA is now recruiting female students into the program, and plans to admit two young women in January. And all ESTA students are gaining experience catering at on-campus events and meetings.
If your group would like to hold a meeting here and have a meal prepared by the ESTA students, contact Tami Ruckman at (828) 254-5356, extension 306 or at truckman@eliada.org.
Eliada’s Lions Cottage Takes on a New Challenge In 2006, Eliada pioneered the state’s first stand-alone adolescent Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facility (PRTF) program to care for children who need indepth, concentrated help with psychological or behavioral issues. Today, Eliada has a total of 5 cottages that serve as many as 42 children who have critical psychological and behavioral needs. Eliada’s intake department noticed that many of the children who were not admitted to PRTF were adolescent males with aggressive behaviors. Our staff, our training, and our facilities were not equipped to successfully care for these children. With our founders vision of helping “the least, the last, and the lost” in our minds, Eliada began figuring out how to change that. Now that the conversion is complete, Eliada’s Lions Cottage is housing nine young men, ages 12-17. These young men most likely will have been involved in delinquent behaviors, failed several other options, and have at least one mental health diagnosis.
Without Eliada, these young men would either be sent out of state for treatment or languish in a hospital setting. Eliada staff plan to use a specific evidence-based therapy called Moral Reconation Therapy (MRT). MRT focuses on how a young person makes decisions, and helps them develop honesty, trust, and sound reasoning.
Stir Up Some Excitement! Sponsor an Eliada Child for the Holidays! Remember how excited you were about the holidays as a child? It was such fun peeking under the tree and looking at presents wrapped in shiny paper, wondering which presents had your name on the tag and what was inside. For most of us, these moments are unforgettable.
With your help, Eliada’s children will also experience these cherished moments. We budget $150 per child for presents during the holiday season. Make a donation of $150 and Eliada’s staff will shop for presents for a child in our treatment and education programs. Go to eliada.org and click on the gold donate button! Eliada is also seeking groups who can assist us with our Christmas party for our children, their families and foster families, and staff on December 18th. We need volunteer groups that can supply food, decorations, and Christmas crafts for the kids! If this is a good fit for your group, please contact Tami Ruckman at (828) 254-5356, ext. 306.
Eliada Foster Care Program Expands to Franklin Eliada’s Foster Care Program has several reasons to celebrate! The first piece of good news is that the number of children who have found their “forever families” is up! Ten children and their new families completed the adoption process this year (November 2012 to present). Additionally, Eliada has five children whose adoption should be finalized in the coming 12 months. The second piece of good news is that through an agreement with The Children’s Home of Winston-Salem to absorb their foster care program, Eliada will broaden our Foster Care services to the westernmost counties of North Carolina. A satellite office of The Children’s Home has been operating in Franklin, providing foster care and other services to the area. Eliada will gain two new Foster and Adoption experts, Carol VanderWoude and April Duvall, as well as another 6 children who are in pre-adoptive homes. Eliada has historically relied on third party agencies to prepare adoption paperwork, but with the addition of the new staff, Eliada’s Foster Care program is positioned to begin these services ourselves.
CAROL
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APRIL
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Welcome, Carol and April to the Eliada family! We are so excited to work with Carol and April, and benefit from their expertise! We are so grateful for their dedication to the children of Western North Carolina, and are grateful they chose to make this transition to Eliada. - Kelly Shusko, Director of Foster Care
To learn more about our Foster Care and Therapeutic Foster Care services, as well as how to become a Foster Parent, contact Kelly Shusko at kshusko@eliada.org or (828) 254-5356, ext. 318.
Caring for Tomorrow’s Children Today Much of Eliada’s funding comes from the public – people who give generously throughout their lives. But did you know that by including a gift to Eliada in your will or estate plan, you can help to continue our work well into the future? People from all walks of life and all incomes can make a significant impact on tomorrow’s children. Some people think they must choose between leaving money to their family or their favorite charity, but you can leave money to both. A simple statement in your will can bring welcome support to Eliada for many, many years to come. You can start today: Make sure you have an up-to-date will that reflects your charitable objectives. Without a will, you surrender control of your property and assets to the courts. Contact a financial advisor or attorney if you need help. You can leave stocks, real estate, insurance policies, or other personal property to Eliada. Make Eliada a beneficiary of your life insurance, pension plan, or IRA by simply adding us on your beneficiary form. For more details on making an impact on tomorrow’s children, contact Tami Ruckman at (828) 254-5356, ext. 306 or at truckman@eliada.org.
GoodBye Summer
2 Compton Drive, Asheville, NC 28806 P.O. Box 16708 Asheville, NC 28816
Thank you for taking the time to read our newsletter. We’ve changed our format to what we hope will be more enjoyable, and have included more of the photos that are so popular. We’d love to know what you think of the new format. You’ve received this newsletter because of your interest in Eliada. If you would like to add someone else to the list, be removed from the list, or give us feedback on the new format, please call Tami Ruckman at (828) 254-5356 or email her at truckman@Eliada.org.
Thank you for caring for Eliada’s children.
Eliada.org | (828) 254-5356