HOMES FOR KIDS Social agency to help public

The agency will host an open house from 8 to 11 a.m. and from 5 to 8 p.m. Monday.
By SHERRI L. SHAULIS
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
NILES -- After providing services to clients referred from various programs in the Mahoning Valley, Homes for Kids is ready to take its work a step further.
The social agency, at 165 E. Park Ave., is offering a new program designed to get families the help they need for behavioral or emotional problems in children and adolescents. The program, Child and Family Solutions, will be highlighted during an open house from 8 to 11 a.m. and from 5 to 8 p.m. Monday.
"Before, we always got the end result of a child with problems," explains Debbie Wilson, executive director of Homes for Kids, which administers the program. "We always thought to ourselves, if we could have been involved sooner, maybe we could have prevented some problems and had a bigger impact."
Mental care
Homes for Kids, which has been in operation since 1990, traditionally provided treatment and foster care for children in situations that did not fit into traditional foster care programs, said John Goodall, who handles public relations for the agency.
"Over time, we found that many of these children needed mental care that wasn't being provided anywhere else," he said.
Based on those needs, and because that gap existed throughout the area, Homes for Kids made the move to become licensed through the Ohio Department of Mental Health to provide in-depth mental health care.
Lisa Ruman, director of Child and Family Solutions, said certification was received in April 2002, and the program became licensed as a Trumbull County LifeLines provider agency in July of that year. The goal of the program, she noted, is to work with children and their families both in the agency and in their homes, schools and neighborhoods. Counseling and other initiatives will be flexible, she said, noting that work can be done at the agency or in the home, as well as during evening and weekend hours if needed.
Dealing with problems
All work is designed to keep together or reunite families and help them deal with problems faced by today's children, including anger, depression, substance abuse and more.
"We understand and believe in the value of families' staying together," she said.
Although Child and Family Solutions has been operational for more than a year, the staff is now ready to make a push to offer its services to the general public, as required by the state.
"We aren't expanding just because we feel the need to expand, but because we want to meet the needs of the community," Wilson said.
Unique program
The program is unique, she explained, in that many agencies in the state cannot provide both the social and mental services needed for extreme foster care situations, as well as adapt those services to the general public.
Homes for Kids and Child and Family Solutions will also continue its practice of collaborating with other social agencies in the area.
Services available from Child and Family Solutions include individual and group therapy, as well as family and child intervention, parental support and education and linking families to available resources.
The program is staffed by licensed professional clinical counselors, licensed social workers and licensed independent social workers. Workers are formally trained in child and adolescent mental health issues, with specialization in sex offender treatment, chemical dependency treatment and hypnotherapy.
During Monday's open house, the public can tour the facility and talk with staff from Homes for Kids and Child and Family Solutions.
Other agencies
Also on hand at the ceremony will be representatives from other social agencies in Trumbull, Mahoning, Columbiana, Summit and Cuyahoga counties; local dignitaries and politicians; and supporters and advocates of the agency.
For information on Child and Family Solutions, or the services provided, call (330) 544-8005 or (888) 245-3340, or check the Web site at www.hfk.org.
slshaulis@vindy.com