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With significant funding from the Chambers Family Foundation, the Oregon Community Foundation through the Elizabeth S. Holden Fund, and the Oregon Department of Human Services (DHS), the Family Reunion project is turning the corner on child abuse and addiction!
Since the project began in October 2006, over 38 families have participated in the Family Reunion project. In the first year, the project has achieved a 92.5% success rate in keeping families together (the national average is 76%). As one-of-its-kind in Oregon, the Family Reunion project offers real help and hope to families that are torn apart by alcohol and drug addiction, and who are facing the permanent loss of their children because of it.
The Family Reunion project offers a safe and effective alternative to foster care by providing intensive parent training, treatment, specific services and intervention, and 24-hour-a-day support targeting family preservation and family reunification. With fewer than half of the Lane County children in foster care ever going home to their parents, these services are critically needed.
Because Willamette Family allows children to live with their moms at the Child Development Center while she is in treatment, this project is unique in our community. In fact, it is the only one in all of Oregon that offers specific family preservation and reunification services at a residential addiction treatment center that also has a child development center with public health and medical services onsite.
The Family Reunion project does not duplicate services offered elsewhere. It builds a solid foundation for families that have experienced child abuse and drug addiction. It is the first step in recovery and in helping families grow strong, together.
In addition to the major support Willamette Family received from foundations and D.H.S., the Family Reunion Project received substantial donations from OnPoint Credit Union, Jerry’s Home Improvement Centers, and Pacific Continental Bank. These incredible sponsors stepped up to break the twin cycles of child abuse and substance addiction.
For more information, or to help sponsor this incredible project, please contact Susie Dey at 684-4150 or SusieD@wfts.org today! Together, we are turning the corner!