The holidays are a great time to remember loved ones and treasured family traditions. My ethnic background and family culture make up a big part of who I am today. My maternal grandparents both immigrated to the US from Italy after World War II in search of the “American Dream”. They came from extremely poor families and wanted better for … Continue
This past fall, SaintA welcomed a visitor from Scotland. Dan Anderson, Senior Forensic Psychologist of Kibble Education and Care Centre, spent two days with us. During our conversations, Dan and I realized Kibble and SaintA have a host of similarities: Kibble was founded in 1840 upon the death of philanthropist Elizabeth Kibble who left a portion of her estate to establish … Continue
If you’re like me, your inbox and social channels have been inundated today with appeals from various non-profits. I love the concept of Giving Tuesday because it puts worthwhile causes in front of us that we may not have otherwise known about. Here at SaintA, we have one of those lesser-known causes with our Independent Living Services (ILS) program.A recent … Continue
We recently told our foster parents about ABC-V, an innovative approach that allows foster parents to provide real-time coaching to bio families by being present during Family Time interactions.Thus far, nine SaintA caregivers have been trained in the ABC-V intervention model and are interested in joining this pilot once the time is right. Children placed in their home need to … Continue
As a social worker, the idea of Caregiver Capacity is not something new to me; self-care was discussed consistently throughout my formal education. Yet, coming to SaintA and hearing about Caregiver Capacity from the lens of being trauma-informed has profoundly impacted my understanding of the importance of this ingredient in my day-to-day practices. I think many of us would agree … Continue
When I was a kid, it was hard to see past what was for lunch, but for some kids, the thought of transportation to school or joining a new summer camp is unnerving when every day one may ask, where will I sleep tonight? Will I be safe? Will I eat dinner? When we talk about Reason to Be with … Continue
“The most important property of humankind is the capacity to form and maintain relationships. These relationships are absolutely necessary for any of us to survive, learn, work, love and procreate. Human relationships take many forms but the most intense, most pleasurable and most painful are those relationships with family, friends and loved ones.” — Dr. Bruce Perry, Bonding and Attachment … Continue
When I consider SaintA’s 7 Essential Ingredients of Trauma Informed Care, I usually try to pick one ingredient to focus on at any given time. While it’s true that they are all of equal importance, I look at each ingredient as the key that opens the door to the next ingredient. The key to opening the door to my selected … Continue
A few hours before I wrote this, I sat down to read a few pages from a book I recently picked back up. The book I’m reading is called “Inside Out” by Larry Crabb, and it’s about understanding yourself deeper from, you guessed it, the inside out. I assumed it was a good book when I bought it based on … Continue
Too often, when working with children and families, I hear people say, “Well, at least they were just a little kid when that happened and they don’t remember.” This common misconception about the Impact of childhood trauma on the developing brain can lead to a lack of understanding of how our experiences shape the way we interact with the world … Continue
To begin to meet the needs of those we work with, we need to first appreciate how often those in our community have been exposed to trauma. One study that helps us understand the prevalence of adverse experiences is the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) study, originally conducted in San Diego, California and replicated in nearly every state, including Wisconsin. Prevalence: … Continue
Child welfare is definitely one of those professions filled with acronyms. OHC for out-of-home care, TFC for treatment foster care and my favorite, WiSACWIS (Wisconsin Statewide Automated Child Welfare Information System.) Say that five times fast. Having been here for only about 6 months, there’s still a lot to learn. However, there are a handful of acronyms I’ve gotten to … Continue
Family fun is an important part of building a strong family identity. When families have fun together, it builds a bond that can last a lifetime. Traditions are often developed in times of fun and it’s those traditions that define and individualize each family. Gina Branch However, with an ever-growing list of things to accomplish each day and technology often … Continue
