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We've outgrown our name. Help us find a new one - You could WIN an iPod Shuffle! For more than 100 years, we have been helping residents in our area achieve and maintain mental wellness. Now, we've grown so much that our name does not fully describe our range of services or the emotional wellbeing that we help provide thousands of people. That's why we need your help! With over 30 professional staff, Family Service provides emotional and mental wellness counseling, life transitions (including loss and grief) counseling, substance abuse/violence education programs, outreach services to the homeless and referral services. "Family Service has become much more than a mental and behavioral healthcare center," says Dan Kill, president and CEO. "Basically, we've outgrown our name. It no longer conveys the full extent of what we do." In addition to providing more than behavioral and mental healthcare, Family Service has been growing to meet needs in other communities. For the past two years, the agency has been providing services to Forest Park residents as well. And for over 15 years, Family Service's Four Community Prevention Program has been providing substance abuse and violence prevention programs to schools throughout Cicero and Berwyn, in addition to the communities of Oak Park and River Forest. The Prevention Team offers in-school and after-school programs for youth related to the development of critical life skills such as conflict resolution, self-esteem, teamwork, cultural diversity and bullying prevention. "We're meeting needs in areas of community wellness that do not fall into what is traditionally considered mental healthcare," says Mr. Kill, noting that Family Service is a go-to resource for various needs like in-home mental health services to older adults, as well as education on topics like anger management and eating disorders. "By working with police, hospitals, and other community resources, Family Service has become an entry point to a comprehensive network of support." How comprehensive is that network? Family Service's community support and recovery services, for example, help clients navigate often-complicated bureaucratic processes to obtain social security and Medicaid, access legal help, find apartments and create affordable utility payment plans. In addition, Family Service offers support for a variety of issues, including stressful life transitions such as divorce or the death of a loved one. All of this growth, however, is a continuation of Family Service's long history of adapting to meet changing community needs. "Staying relevant to the communities we serve for over a century has definitely required growth and adaptation on our part," says Mr. Kill. "And I think Family Service has found another opportunity to continue being an important and accessible community resource," he continues. The idea of renaming the agency is not one that Family Service has taken lightly. Rather, staff and board have given careful consideration to the impact of such a move. "We are very much a community agency, and I think people in Oak Park and River Forest feel a collective ownership of Family Service. Our supporters have always been there for us, and we want to maintain this closeness," says Mr. Kill. So when it came time to consider a new name, it was clear that this, too, should come from the community. "Each year we work with thousands of individuals from diverse communities," he continues. "Family Service, in a sense, belongs to these communities, and we want them to be a part of selecting our new name." To help select that name, we are taking suggestions from our residents of local communities. Email your suggestions for a new name to name-us@familyserviceoprf.org, (remember to include your name and contact information), or send them to 120 S. Marion St., Oak Park, IL 60302, attn: Name Us.
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