Real People, Real Stories

Behind each adult, child and family we serve lies a real story- stories that bring to life the true meaning hope, change and possibilities.

Tyrone’s Story

Tyrone, a 28 year old young man with Down Syndrome and Klinefelter Syndrome, attends the Pat LeBon Day Program. When he first arrived at the program, Tyrone had a very limited vocabulary and engaged in negative attention seeking behaviors. He often lashed out physically with staff and other consumers. Some days he would fall to the ground, throw tantrums and refuse to participate in program.

After a few months with a one-on-one staff member and behaviorist, we slowly began to see improvements. He started to show more affection, participate in program, and now tries to jump in on conversations whenever he gets the chance. Staff at the program were thrilled when they realized Tyrone loves to sing and enjoys dancing to anything upbeat. In fact, he often takes the stage as the star of the show at the program talent show and holiday parties.

Tyrone is also more active at home and even volunteers to do chores. One of his new favorite hobbies is reading, which he learned to do at Pat LeBon using an interactive storybook reader. Since he has shown such great adjustment, we believe he will soon no longer need a one-on-one staff. He put his trust in our staff and we will continue to put our trust in his strengths and abilities. The possibilities are endless.

Giannine’s Story

Giannine has battled bipolar disorder since she was in college. After graduation, it became more and more difficult to manage the symptoms of her illness and she began to believe she would never accomplish the goals she’d worked so hard for.

As full time employment slipped further from her grasp, her euphoric symptoms of mania worsened as did the never ending racing thoughts. Over the course of several years, Giannine spent time in psychiatric hospitals and her relationships with family members worsened. She often worried that she would never gain the trust of those around her, never be seen as anything more than her mental illness.

Over time she realized that for treatment to be successful she had to be honest about her feelings and take medication daily to manage her symptoms. Today she understands the consequences of the unhealthy behaviors and uses coping skills to help make better life choices.

Giannine’s path to recovery has not been easy but with the support of Twin Oaks, her family, and doctors, she has been able to restore a healthy balance in her life. Recently, she found work with Enterprise Services- a big step! This new job provides more than just an income. It provides a renewed sense of purpose.

“Now I live each day with a feeling in my heart and mind that I am well. That I have regained the trust of my parents and siblings that I thought was lost forever. Living life not lying about my illness and knowing it doesn’t define me. I’m comforted knowing that if I need help again from Twin Oaks it’s there waiting for me.” – Giannine

Maquellage’s Story

Maquellage grew up in foster care after her grandmother passed away when she was 13. Her life began to spiral out of control. After becoming a teen mother, the Division of Youth and Family Services removed her two children from her home due to extreme financial hardship and homelessness.

Maquellage made the decision to do everything possible to successfully reunite with her children but without a positive support system she struggled to meet the requirements. With little hope, she enrolled in the Intensive Supervised Visitation program at the Charles Yates Center for Children and Families.

In the Intensive Supervised Visitation program, Maquellage received case management services and successfully completed the Nurturing Parenting program. She enrolled in a Medical Assistant program to begin a career and create financial stability for her family. Determined to succeed, she graduated with a high grade point average and quickly secured a job.

During her 15 months with Twin Oaks she showed remarkable improvement in her parenting ability and maturity level. On May 7, 2010 she was proudly reunified with her two children. Today the family receives therapy with our Family Preservation Services program and her daughter, Chanelle, attends our First Step pre-school program. Despite the challenges she faced, Maquellage found the courage and drive to turn her life around.

Zachary’s Story

Eleven year old Zachary arrived at Pine Brook Group Home with a diagnosis of autism and compulsive control disorder. His family could no longer care for him at home due to his severe behavioral challenges. With less than 15 words in his vocabulary, Zachary had no communication skills.

Staff implemented an individualized treatment plan and soon started to see positive changes in Zachary’s behavior. His speech has gradually improved and he now has nearly 80 words in his vocabulary. He has developed social skills and now plays with toys and other children. Recently, he even began going on outings and making home visits.

With this challenging population, staff at the home recognize that most importantly, consumers are children first. Their disabilities and special needs are second. This summer staff watched in amazement as Zachary learned how to ride a bike-a huge accomplishment. Moving forward, his future looks bright. He simply needed the right services and supports to reach his full potential.

Chris’s Story

Chris has been a positive force moving through both the MICA (Mentally Ill Chemically Addicted) and prevocational program within our Adult Community Services. He has typified our motto of having the courage to change despite fluctuating anxiety, health issues and living circumstances.

In program Chris learned to take control of his recovery and improve his interpersonal relationships. His strong desire to progress allowed him to overcome worry-causing interactions such as communicating needs to his doctor, or working out difficulties with his boss in the prevocational program.

Chris experienced a relapse in the early part of this year. Stress from work and housing difficulties caused negative feelings that in turn led to old, negative ways of coping. Despite this, Chris’s addictive behaviors did not reemerge. He did not become dishonest or allow alcohol to resume control over his life. Instead, he used the anxiety causing events and response as a means of support for his recovery.

Chris recently obtained a job as a full-time laborer with benefits at Fort Dix and remains connected to our Haven housing program. Confident and happy with his progress, he is both excited and sad to leave the MICA Program. He now has new opportunities to successfully use the skills he learned in treatment during his time at Twin Oaks. His continued commitment to his own recovery will allow him to take full advantage of what a sober life has to offer.

Hope’s Story

Hope came to live at our Holly House Group Home in November 2007. Upon arrival, she was very quiet and did not converse with staff or her housemates. Her vocabulary consisted of a simple yes or no to everything that she was asked. She would isolate herself and if you didn’t see her, you would not know she was there.

Hope has blossomed in so many ways during her time at Holly House. Today she will greet staff when they come in for a shift and eagerly helps her housemates with chores. She verbalizes her needs and wants and is able to answer in short sentences when asked a question. In addition, she assists with meal preparation and demonstrates independence in other areas of daily living.

Hope always takes great pride in her appearance and enjoys getting pampered, such as getting her hair and nails done. She looks forward to visiting her family during the holidays and going on trips with her housemates. Some of Hope’s favorite social activities include going to events at the Charles Yates Center, the movies and especially dances. She will get on the dance floor all by herself when she hears line-dancing music!

Most recently, Hope was hired to do contract work through our Pat LeBon Empowerment Program and will now have an opportunity to make money to buy a few of the things she enjoys most – books, puzzles and watches!

Ryan’s Story

Five year old Ryan came to Gentle Harbor Group Home with an extremely tumultuous background and long history of behavioral issues. From the start, he exhibited disruptive, anti-social behavior, kicking and biting the other children and staff. Telling a positive story, sharing a memory or just playing with another child were seen as great achievements.

Some said Ryan would never make it with an adopted family, but Ryan made tremendous progress. He learned essential coping skills in place of negative behaviors and developed simple social skills.

Ryan was positively discharged and placed with a very loving adoptive family- truly a perfect match. He continues to do wonderfully and now his new family works with our Adoption Support Program. In addition, his therapist from Gentle Harbor mentored Ryan for three months after discharge. Staff truly went the extra mile to ensure a smooth transition to the adoptive home. All Ryan needed was the opportunity to shine.

John’s Story

To help get on the right track, John began attending Harmony Place, a Mental Health Day Program, to learn essential job skills. His first attempt at new employment at a local department store did not go well and John was very disappointed that he didn’t succeed. This only motivated him to try and work on his attitude and appropriate responses toward authority figures.

John started to participate in group counseling at a Twin Oaks day program and also received constant feedback from the staff at Britton Place to help with his social deficiencies. Finally, John was given the opportunity to work at the Pat Lebon Empowerment Program as a custodial employee cleaning some of the agency programs.

He encountered many obstacles during his first couple of months working on the cleaning crew. At first he was not receptive to feedback from his supervisor, but with constant supervision and counseling, John learned to acknowledge some of the areas that needed improvement. After six months of working on these issues, John was named the “Most Improved Employee” at the employment program. Britton Place announced John’s award to the staff and made sure that everyone acknowledged his success. This allowed him to feel confident and proud of his accomplishments as he continues to grow!