What's New at KidsPeace

 BETHLEHEM BROADWAY CAMPUS OFFERS SPECTRUM OF PROGRAMS  FOR LEHIGH VALLEY FAMILIES

KidsPeace has expanded and broadened its services with the opening of a new outpatient facility at its campus located at 1650 Broadway in South Bethlehem. 

The new KidsPeace Family Center at Broadway will offer a spectrum of services for children and families, including a new 24-hour toll-free phone number that will serve as a referral source for parents who need help.

The Family Center will offer:  Diagnostic Services, Autism Services, (Including the Sarah’s Smile Summer Camp and After School Therapeutic Programs), Outpatient Therapy, Behavioral Health and Rehabilitation Services (BHRS), Drug and Alcohol Treatment, In-Home Treatment, Allied Professional Services and Referrals.

 

“We are very proud today to announce an exciting new chapter in our organization’s 128-year-old history,” said William Isemann, KidsPeace President & CEO. “This initiative expands our services to provide much-needed programs in the Lehigh Valley and broadens our mission to provide hope, help and healing to children, families and communities.”

 

As part of this new center, KidsPeace is also launching a new toll-free phone number in the Lehigh Valley that will serve as a referral source for parents who may be struggling with their children and need assistance.  888-KP-Helps is staffed by KidsPeace Admissions Associates who will assess the caller’s needs and help them navigate the system to find the best resources.  At times, those callers will be referred to KidsPeace diagnostic or treatment services.  Other calls may be referred to another Lehigh Valley agency better suited to meet a specific need. Help may also be accessed through a new online form at www.kidspeace.org.

 

The 50 children who previously resided on the Broadway Campus have been moved to the newly renovated Pioneer Center on the Orchard Hills Campus, Orefield, and have begun the school year along with all other KidsPeace residential students.

 

The newly constructed 9,500 square-foot center on the southwestern end of the campus will serve as the operation hub where assessments can be conducted, appointments provided and where families can access help navigating the system to locate the best resources to meet their needs.

 

Built on the original site of the former Wiley House, the center was completed this summer and reflects the original design of the home that began as a children’s orphanage in 1882.  Space in the other buildings on the campus will also be utilized for classes, services and a variety of programs and therapies.  At a total cost of $3 million, the project included extensive curbing, driveway access and street renovations by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation.

 

Approximately 117 full and part-time KidsPeace Associates will staff the KidsPeace Center and Broadway Campus.

 

   

The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention is holding its fifth annual fundraising walk in Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania on Sunday, October 10th at the Lehigh Parkway in Allentown. KidsPeace Senior Psychologist Peter Langman, PhD, is the president of the Lehigh Valley Chapter and is very active in raising awareness of suicide through this event. "Someone dies from suicide every 16 minutes in the US," according to Langman, "and suicide is the third leading cause of death in 15 - 24 year old in this country."  

The walk is held every year to increase awareness of suicide, raise funds for suicide prevention and support those who have lost a loved one to suicide. Hundreds of adults and children walk in honor of friends and family members who have been lost to suicide and receive donations from supporters who sponsor their walk.

KidsPeace has a growing team of associates, their family members and youth in residential programs who walk to keep awareness of suicide high. At the end of the walk, there will be music and a chance to mingle and offer support to each other. Walkers are urged to bring a picnic lunch and blanket. Light refreshments will be served.

If you would like to join the KidsPeace team or form a team of you own for this inspiring event, visit www.outofthedarkness.org to register or to make a donation through a registered team. Search for team names by clicking on the Participant/Team Search link. All donations and walkers will make a difference and help AFSP reach out to and educate our neighbors and community members.

   

 

OREFIELD, September 16, 2010 – Attendees will time travel to 1940’s Morocco when KidsPeace presents “An Evening in Club Casablanca” Saturday, Oct. 2 at the KidsPeace Orchard Hills Campus, Orefield.  Cocktails are at 5:30; dinner is at 7 p.m.

            This year’s gala will feature décor, food and drinks all inspired by the classic Academy-award winning movie starring Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman.  The big band sounds of Steve Lippia and his 10-piece orchestra will perform “Simply Sinatra” and the evening will include a casino, silent auction and a raffle for a luxurious trip to Morocco.

            Gala honorees for 2010 are J. Jackson Eaton III, attorney with Gross McGinley, and Robert and Susan Allen, long time supporters of KidsPeace.  Simply Smooth of Allentown is catering and staging the event.

For more than 128 years, KidsPeace has been the nation’s leading charitable organization, dedicated to children.  KidsPeace provides a full continuum of mental and behavioral health programs for children and their families. 

“We are excited to present this unique movie-inspired event and to also have the opportunity to honor and thank Jackson and the Allens for their continued and dedicated support,” said Will Isemann, KidsPeace President and CEO. 

Guests are invited to wear 1940’s inspired dress or elegant black/white/grey attire.  For tickets, sponsorship or more information, contact Sheri Weber at 610-799-8071 or sheri.weber@kidspeace.org.

 

About KidsPeace

Founded in 1882, KidsPeace is dedicated to serving the behavioral and mental health needs of children, preadolescents, teens and young adults, offering a comprehensive range of residential treatment programs; accredited educational services, and a variety of foster care and community-based programs to give hope, help and healing to children, families and communities.  KidsPeace offers services in Georgia, Indiana, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Virginia and the District of Columbia

KIDSPEACE AUXILIARY TO PRESENT
24TH ANNUAL FASHION SHOW

September 15, 2010

Fashions from Coldwater Creek will be featured at the 24th Annual KidsPeace Auxiliary Fashion Show and Luncheon Sept. 15th from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Bethlehem Best Western, Rts. 512 and 22.

Since 1948, the KidsPeace Auxiliary has raised funds to support the work of providing hope, help and healing to children, families and communities. Originally founded as the Wiley House Ladies Auxiliary, the KidsPeace Auxiliary has assisted thousands of children for more than 60 years.

Tickets for the event are $25 and can be reserved by calling Sheri Weber at 610-799-8071. All proceeds for the 2010 show will benefit KidsPeace Autism programs.

KidsPeace Foster Care & Community Programs
To Hold Fundraiser in Kingston

September 16
6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

The KidsPeace Foster Care & Community Programs office serving the Hudson Valley region will present a fundraiser Sept. 16 from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. a the Sky Top Restaurant, 237 Forest Hill Drive, Kingston, NY.

All proceeds will benefit the KidsPeace Resilience Fund providing support to foster children through sports, summer and art camps, musical instruments, enrichment activities, clothing and supplies.

Hors d’oeuvres, house beers and wines will be included. The evening will also feature a silent auction and music by Murali Coryell. Tickets are $50 per person or $90 for couples.

Event sponsors are Chronogram and Radio Woodstock, 100.1 WDST.
For tickets or information, 845-331-1815.

 

KidsPeace provided another summer filled with fun and games for 150 children teens on the Autism Spectrum. Sarah's Smile is a popular camp-like day program that offers autistic children the opportunity to have fun and increase social skills in a safe and nurturing environment. The groups go on field trips, play games, make wonderful art, interact with caring staff and make many friends.

 

"This was a great summer for the kids," said Program Manager of Community Autism Services and Blended Case Management Paige Keeter. "We brought the older kids up to the Orchard Hills Campus every week to give them a changed of scene and a lot of room to run and play." Competitive games of Capture the Flag were great fun and became eagerly anticipated weekly events between the Lions and the Alligators. It was so popular, Paige added, that one boy who moved out west during camp called her to ask who captured the flag the next week.

 

Sarah's Smile was able to accommodate 126 children a day, which required careful planning by staff to ensure that vacations were factored in to provide some camp to as many kids as possible. The children, who attended four days a week, filled 14 classrooms at the KidsPeace CDCRT located on Broadway in Bethlehem. Paige was delighted that 80% of the staff were returning from the previous year, which speaks well of the program. Many have been counselors for many years, moving up in title as they complete college and receive certifications. "They form relationships with the children and with each other," Paige continued, "which only makes the experience more meaningful for everyone involved."

 

Field Trips

 

Each week, the classes go on field trips that educate and are very enjoyable. In addition to trips to the more rural Orchard Hills Campus, the kids went to several great places. They visited Flint Hill farms where they learned about milking cows, making butter and cheese and what dairy farms are all about. They also went bowling at the Rose Bowl in Allentown and got to attend a day game of the Iron Pigs baseball team. The week before the game, they took a tour of Coca Cola Stadium to see where the game would be played, where they would sit and how the facility operated inside and out. They participated in an onsite petting zoo and had a carnival to mark the last day of camp. There were moon bounces, popcorn, cotton candy, snow cones, a dunk tank and games they could play for prizes. It was a great day for the kids and staff.

 

The kids and staff played their last capture the flag game on the day before the carnival and had a picnic at Orchard Hills. Paige invited KidsPeace associates who do not typically interact with the kids to attend the picnic because their support throughout the summer and the entire year make it possible to serve these wonderful kids. She paired staff members up with kids as lunch buddies, and new relationships were formed that allowed the kids to ask lots of questions and meet yet more caring KidsPeace employees.

 

For More Information

As this summer closes, Paige is planning for next summer's Sarah Smile program. "Each year we hope to expand to accommodate more children," according to Paige. "The kids love it and so do the parents, who are great supporters." There are always many more applicants than there are spaces, so Paige keeps a list of interested participants throughout the year and always sends prior attendees invitations to apply for the following summer. The mailing is sent out in late January, and the spots are all filled by March 1.

 

To receive more information on Sarah's Smile Summer Program, contact Paige Keeter at 610-799-7357 or email at Paige.Keeter@KidsPeace.org.