Post by Dean Robinson on Jan 30, 2008 13:43:10 GMT -5
The Gatehouse survives, restructures
Etobicoke child abuse support centre pioneers new programs
BY TAMARA SHEPHARD
January 29, 2008 05:00 PM
www.insidetoronto.com/news/News/Etobicoke/article/40216
The Gatehouse struggled a year ago to stay alive amid financial difficulties.
Like its clients, the Etobicoke-based child abuse support centre survived. Now it is restructuring, with a focus on making its investigation operations a one-stop location with new children's programs, and training volunteers in other communities to offer its adult support programs.
"It will be a training ground, a research ground, to try out new things in terms of our understanding of resilience, mentoring, group facilitation, self-support, and adult survival of child abuse," executive director Janet Handy said of The Gatehouse's new direction, saying it will become a centre of excellence.
The Gatehouse is a support centre that provides a safe environment for criminal investigations of child abuse, and offers care and understanding to children and adults who have experienced child abuse.
Its doors are open 24/7 to police and children's aid societies, which use its facilities and investigation support program without charge. The program helps them carry out child abuse investigations, and tape victims' statements in a child-friendly room.
Now, Gatehouse staff plan to add other investigation capabilities in-house, including physical exams, child treatment and court preparation.
Its role - to work with the system to fill gaps, but also to provide unique and transformative programs for children.
One program has non-perpetrating parents doing creative arts with their children and monitoring the child's behaviour while strengthening the child-parent bond.
"It's a program to strengthen children's self-esteem and self-worth within an arts program, and hopefully fill a gap with children still afraid to disclose even though they've been here," Handy said.
"There are many officers and CAS (Children's Aid Society) workers who go out of here saying, 'We can't help this child, and I wish we could because the child hasn't said anything. If children don't disclose in the present system, they don't get treatment."
The FAST (Families and Schools Together) program ensures children are treated with respect and are leaders in their healing, Handy said.
A third pilot program involves engaging parents and siblings aged 12 and younger who abuse a younger sibling in a 'restorative justice' circle. The goal of restorative justice is to restore the relationship, fix the damage and prevent future occurrences.
"Children imitate what has been done to them. So sometimes, you have older siblings who've abused younger siblings," Handy said. "In that gap, there's lots of kids then who get labelled a perpetrator when there's still opportunities there to reach out to that child and change that behaviour."
A decision to sell its adult training program to professionals and leaders in other communities across Ontario will yield two benefits: revenue generation for The Gatehouse, as well as a network of locally run child abuse support programs across the province.
Gatehouse staff has trained volunteers in Cornwall in its adult support program, and Peel Region has also shown interest, Handy said.
Online support is available to the groups through The Gatehouse's website (www.thegatehouse.org).
Making its website more interactive to reach out to children in need is another goal.
"There's always the child who won't tell anybody, no matter what," Handy said. "We'd like to find a way to have a resource for that child, even for them to e-mail anonymously and talk about things."
Typically, adult survivors enrol in a 15-week group program at the Gatehouse.
Gregory Weber leads a men's support group at The Gatehouse. "It's the magic of someone saying, 'I know what you're going through. How could you feel any other way?' It's an empowering statement that gives you some hope that with time and support, you'll get your life back. It's just the beginning. But it can move you from a state of being stuck, and hopefully, you keep moving forward."
Weber, 36, entered The Gatehouse's support program for adult male survivors of sexual abuse in December 2006, two months after his self-described 'meltdown'. He'd found few places to turn for help, a reality for male survivors.
"There's really nothing else out there for men. To me, it saves lives," Weber said.
Gatehouse staff now plan to adapt the key topics of learning in its successful adult programs to children.
"The adult program content is all those things we should have had the opportunity to learn in childhood," said Angela Gallant, The Gatehouse's volunteer co-ordinator.
"Instead of a man having to wait until he's 40 to implement boundaries, trust, learn what is intimacy. The earlier we can provide those basic life skills to children then they can carry them with them throughout their life. And we may not have to see them when they're 40."
Statistics indicate one in four children will be sexually abused before the age of 18, usually by someone they know and trust.
"The Gatehouse becomes a community for people that is their lifeline to going beyond abuse, even though that's what they came here for," Handy said. "It really is saying, 'let's go beyond this.'"
Etobicoke child abuse support centre pioneers new programs
BY TAMARA SHEPHARD
January 29, 2008 05:00 PM
www.insidetoronto.com/news/News/Etobicoke/article/40216
The Gatehouse struggled a year ago to stay alive amid financial difficulties.
Like its clients, the Etobicoke-based child abuse support centre survived. Now it is restructuring, with a focus on making its investigation operations a one-stop location with new children's programs, and training volunteers in other communities to offer its adult support programs.
"It will be a training ground, a research ground, to try out new things in terms of our understanding of resilience, mentoring, group facilitation, self-support, and adult survival of child abuse," executive director Janet Handy said of The Gatehouse's new direction, saying it will become a centre of excellence.
The Gatehouse is a support centre that provides a safe environment for criminal investigations of child abuse, and offers care and understanding to children and adults who have experienced child abuse.
Its doors are open 24/7 to police and children's aid societies, which use its facilities and investigation support program without charge. The program helps them carry out child abuse investigations, and tape victims' statements in a child-friendly room.
Now, Gatehouse staff plan to add other investigation capabilities in-house, including physical exams, child treatment and court preparation.
Its role - to work with the system to fill gaps, but also to provide unique and transformative programs for children.
One program has non-perpetrating parents doing creative arts with their children and monitoring the child's behaviour while strengthening the child-parent bond.
"It's a program to strengthen children's self-esteem and self-worth within an arts program, and hopefully fill a gap with children still afraid to disclose even though they've been here," Handy said.
"There are many officers and CAS (Children's Aid Society) workers who go out of here saying, 'We can't help this child, and I wish we could because the child hasn't said anything. If children don't disclose in the present system, they don't get treatment."
The FAST (Families and Schools Together) program ensures children are treated with respect and are leaders in their healing, Handy said.
A third pilot program involves engaging parents and siblings aged 12 and younger who abuse a younger sibling in a 'restorative justice' circle. The goal of restorative justice is to restore the relationship, fix the damage and prevent future occurrences.
"Children imitate what has been done to them. So sometimes, you have older siblings who've abused younger siblings," Handy said. "In that gap, there's lots of kids then who get labelled a perpetrator when there's still opportunities there to reach out to that child and change that behaviour."
A decision to sell its adult training program to professionals and leaders in other communities across Ontario will yield two benefits: revenue generation for The Gatehouse, as well as a network of locally run child abuse support programs across the province.
Gatehouse staff has trained volunteers in Cornwall in its adult support program, and Peel Region has also shown interest, Handy said.
Online support is available to the groups through The Gatehouse's website (www.thegatehouse.org).
Making its website more interactive to reach out to children in need is another goal.
"There's always the child who won't tell anybody, no matter what," Handy said. "We'd like to find a way to have a resource for that child, even for them to e-mail anonymously and talk about things."
Typically, adult survivors enrol in a 15-week group program at the Gatehouse.
Gregory Weber leads a men's support group at The Gatehouse. "It's the magic of someone saying, 'I know what you're going through. How could you feel any other way?' It's an empowering statement that gives you some hope that with time and support, you'll get your life back. It's just the beginning. But it can move you from a state of being stuck, and hopefully, you keep moving forward."
Weber, 36, entered The Gatehouse's support program for adult male survivors of sexual abuse in December 2006, two months after his self-described 'meltdown'. He'd found few places to turn for help, a reality for male survivors.
"There's really nothing else out there for men. To me, it saves lives," Weber said.
Gatehouse staff now plan to adapt the key topics of learning in its successful adult programs to children.
"The adult program content is all those things we should have had the opportunity to learn in childhood," said Angela Gallant, The Gatehouse's volunteer co-ordinator.
"Instead of a man having to wait until he's 40 to implement boundaries, trust, learn what is intimacy. The earlier we can provide those basic life skills to children then they can carry them with them throughout their life. And we may not have to see them when they're 40."
Statistics indicate one in four children will be sexually abused before the age of 18, usually by someone they know and trust.
"The Gatehouse becomes a community for people that is their lifeline to going beyond abuse, even though that's what they came here for," Handy said. "It really is saying, 'let's go beyond this.'"