18. December 2010 by admin.

“The kids have such pride in themselves.”

10. December 2010 by admin.

A JUNTA — Residents of CBR YouthConnect are helping others — from the kitchen.

Youths at the psychiatric residential treatment center, formerly known as the Colorado Boys Ranch, are taking part in the center’s new Catering Connection program. They’re baking pies, breads and desserts to donate to holiday meals in the community. And they’re helping needy students in the Arkansas Valley by filling backpacks with food through Care and Share’s Backpack Program, which provides free lunches.

The youths are Patrick, Tyler , “Kit” , James , Israel and Skyler. They are enrolled in the Principles of Food Technology class at the treatment center. It’s an academic class that meets every day — four days of book work and one day of cooking — and for which students get credit and a certificate.

“They have to earn their way into the class,” says instructor Kristi Hartless. “They have to show appropriate behavior, they have to meet their (treatment) program goals. They’re the cream of the crop, the ones who have more initiative.

“We’re teaching different aspects of food service: cooking, waiting on people, dishwashing. We’re giving them skills so when they leave they might have a chance at a job.”

The class and the catering experience have other real-world applications that the boys understand, says Martin Masar, executive director of CBR YouthConnect.

“They did a (role-playing) session on how to handle an angry customer,” Masar says. “These kids have been hurt and abused all their lives and some of them have anger problems of their own. What a powerful clinical tool — to show them that they can wait on people with a smile.”

Masar also says that volunteering to help other people causes a person to open his heart to receive emotional rewards, feelings such as compassion, happiness, excitement, hope and love, and that these emotions have healing powers.

This is the first year youths are helping in the catering program, according to Tammy Talmich, the catering manager.

“We have four kids in the class who work in the kitchen during the day, helping prep food, clean up, whatever we need them to do. They handle the situations so wonderfully. Most of the time they go and do the task and do it in a timely manner.”

The youths will make 600 dinner rolls for a community Christmas dinner and might bake gingerbread men, too, Talmich says.

“They’ve made everything from flatbread to stromboli (meat- and cheese-filled pastry) to desserts. We want to teach them to make candy.

“They’ve done some catering at the ranch. We had a business dinner and one man said he thought it was a professional catering firm. They did an excellent job; they were very service-oriented.

“The kids have such pride in themselves.”

Talmich says she sees a real change in one young man when he enters the kitchen.

“He is very standoffish — he has a lot of trust issues and doesn’t like to interact with others. But put him in the kitchen and he’s smiling and laughing. He made some of the best pumpkin cheesecake I’ve ever eaten — from scratch. The kids requested it for our dinner here at the ranch.”

Talmich says he has the talent to go on to a career in the food industry “if he puts his mind to it.”

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10. December 2010 by admin.

A JUNTA — Residents of CBR YouthConnect are helping others — from the kitchen.

Youths at the psychiatric residential treatment center, formerly known as the Colorado Boys Ranch, are taking part in the center’s new Catering Connection program. They’re baking pies, breads and desserts to donate to holiday meals in the community. And they’re helping needy students in the Arkansas Valley by filling backpacks with food through Care and Share’s Backpack Program, which provides free lunches.

The youths are Patrick Lundahl, Tyler Crotsenberg, Christopher “Kit” Lyons, James McDonald, Israel Farrell and Skyler Lane. They are enrolled in the Principles of Food Technology class at the treatment center. It’s an academic class that meets every day — four days of book work and one day of cooking — and for which students get credit and a certificate.

“They have to earn their way into the class,” says instructor Kristi Hartless. “They have to show appropriate behavior, they have to meet their (treatment) program goals. They’re the cream of the crop, the ones who have more initiative.

“We’re teaching different aspects of food service: cooking, waiting on people, dishwashing. We’re giving them skills so when they leave they might have a chance at a job.”

The class and the catering experience have other real-world applications that the boys understand, says Martin Masar, executive director of CBR YouthConnect.

“They did a (role-playing) session on how to handle an angry customer,” Masar says. “These kids have been hurt and abused all their lives and some of them have anger problems of their own. What a powerful clinical tool — to show them that they can wait on people with a smile.”

Masar also says that volunteering to help other people causes a person to open his heart to receive emotional rewards, feelings such as compassion, happiness, excitement, hope and love, and that these emotions have healing powers.

This is the first year youths are helping in the catering program, according to Tammy Talmich, the catering manager.

“We have four kids in the class who work in the kitchen during the day, helping prep food, clean up, whatever we need them to do. They handle the situations so wonderfully. Most of the time they go and do the task and do it in a timely manner.”

The youths will make 600 dinner rolls for a community Christmas dinner and might bake gingerbread men, too, Talmich says.

“They’ve made everything from flatbread to stromboli (meat- and cheese-filled pastry) to desserts. We want to teach them to make candy.

“They’ve done some catering at the ranch. We had a business dinner and one man said he thought it was a professional catering firm. They did an excellent job; they were very service-oriented.

“The kids have such pride in themselves.”

Talmich says she sees a real change in one young man when he enters the kitchen.

“He is very standoffish — he has a lot of trust issues and doesn’t like to interact with others. But put him in the kitchen and he’s smiling and laughing. He made some of the best pumpkin cheesecake I’ve ever eaten — from scratch. The kids requested it for our dinner here at the ranch.”

Talmich says he has the talent to go on to a career in the food industry “if he puts his mind to it.”

Posted in Education, Family, Youth, Treatment | No Comments »

28. December 2009 by admin.

On Wednesday, December 16th, one of our therapists approached me to update on several of her cases. We discussed one particular young child who was about to be discharged. She indicated that his funding had expired and negotiations with the referral source were unsuccessful. In addition, this young child could not, for whatever reasons, return to his home. The CBRYC treatment team recommended he be placed in a step-down level of care. The therapist received notice that there were no available beds in any of the potential receiving facilities. His referring Colorado County decided it best to place this young child in a juvenile detention center over the Christmas Holidays until a receiving bed could be found. CBRYC offered the County an absurdly reduced daily rate, in order to keep this young child here until such time as a more appropriate facility could be found. We certainly expected them to jump at this offer and felt this was certainly more appropriate and humane than sending him to a juvenile jail for Christmas. The County replied they would not fund anything. Thereafter, we contacted the mother of this child. She was very distraught. We offered her an even more reduced rate, if she would like her child to remain with us over the holidays. She was extremely pleased and very emotional. Keeping in mind, I had never met this young child; my day quickly progressed into the usual things that occupy my time. Sometime later a young child came to the office waiting room and shyly asked for me. I went to him and introduced myself. I remember he grabbed the sleeve of my jacket as if to make sure he got my attention. He timidly gave me his name and said he was the one who was about to be placed in detention. His eyes opened up and he said thank you and that he really wanted to stay at CBRYC over the holidays. He said this was the best Christmas present he had ever received. He went on to say, “My mom cried.” We exchanged pleasantries and I told him I was so happy he could be with us. I told him I would look for him at the Holiday party on Friday evening. As he smiled, his deep dark eyes locked with mine. Later that evening, as I pondered the day’s events and remembered the deep dark eyes of that child, I heard a song that suddenly meant so much more to me.

“Away in a manger, No crib for His bed, the little Lord Jesus laid down His sweet head…….
Bless all the dear children in Thy tender care,
And take us to heaven - to live with Thee there.”

As with the last 50 years and for the next 50 years, at CBRYC our “children” will never be an economic burden or an “accepted causality” – but indeed our most precious gift.

Martin Masar
Executive Director

Posted in Family, Youth, Parents | 2 Comments »

26. October 2009 by admin.

More troops than ever are leaving their homes and families for the harsh and demanding terrain of war. With this increased mobilization, more families are being moved as well. Children taken from schools and supplanted into other, maybe even foreign-based military schools. Additionally, many parents face the stress of having little to no support for these youths, who are often confused and reacting to their respective environments. Parents may in fact be overwhelmed by the hurricane of changing responsibilities and additional resistance from the youths.
In 2008, nearly 13,000 military marriages ended, and a study done by the Armed Forces & Society shows that American military veterans are more than 62% more likely to have had a failed marriage. These shocking statistics reveal the very real and domestic casualty that can be: the American Military family. But it does not have to be. Is there some way, any way, to assist these families that struggle so much already? Is there someone who cares enough to not let these families end up as another statistic?
There is such a place. CBR YouthConnect wants to give back a small portion of the sacrifices of America’s Military and their families. We are proud to be able to offer such a service, and WE WANT TO HELP! As an approved TriCare provider, CBR YouthConnect has ensured that not only will these families be supported and cared for, but will receive just and honest treatment for youths that have fallen off the right path. Moreover, CBR YouthConnect has seen, treated, and served dozens of Military families in need of a little help.
CBR YouthConnect is a nationally recognized and accredited residential treatment facility located in La Junta, Colorado. The CBR campus itself was at one time a military establishment during World War II and still enjoys hosting Armed Forces Day celebrations. CBR YouthConnect has been serving thousands of youths from all over the world for the last 50 years! CBR YouthConnect is also always looking forward in the best ways to help youths in need of a little guidance.
CBR YouthConnect offers not just a structured and guided Education program, but many other on campus activities as well. Among these are Horsemanship, Woodshop, and Animal Care. In addition, our widely recognized New Leash on Life Program offers youth the chance to train and care for a dog, many of which were mistreated or abandoned.
CBR YouthConnect President Chuck Thompson expressed his personal excitement for helping Military families: “For…50 years, our organization has grown and evolved to meet the needs of society, and to now be able to provide our mental health and educational services to our U.S. military service members and their families makes us very proud.”

Thanks to you, the American Military, and our Nation.

God bless America!

Posted in Military Families, Tricare, Family, Youth | 1 Comment »

16. September 2009 by admin.

Posted in CBR Staff | 1 Comment »

5. August 2009 by admin.

On Oct. 2, CBR YouthConnect will celebrate 50 years worth of experience helping troubled boys and girls in unique settings, giving them the ability to be productive and responsible members of society.
One of the leading methods in treating youth to reconnect with society has been to first teach them how to connect with animals.
On Wednesday, Denver businessman Steve Fuller, president of Colorado Boys Ranch Foundation, reviewed for the La Junta Rotary Club how Colorado Boys Ranch was started from scratch by a group of state judges and La Junta businessmen who saw the need to help some 4,000 “delinquent” boys get a second chance in life. Fuller also told the Rotarians how CBR YouthConnect has evolved into one of the nation’s premier psychiatric residential treatment facilities.
Fuller weaved into about 40 minutes a story that is long and complicated, full of challenges, changes and countless positive outcomes. But one thing has remained constant: From its humble beginnings until today, the Boys Ranch has learned that caring for animals often is the key to helping troubled youth reconnect in positive ways with the people around them.
“It’s an exciting time for CBR YouthConnect,” Fuller said. “There is great potential here for research down the road, especially in animal-assisted therapy. We’ve already had some teams come to study how we do things, but there are no standards for it across the nation.”
In other words, CBR YouthConnect sets the standard in animal-assisted therapy for helping boys at the ranch north ot La Junta, which Fuller said will continue to house only boys, and for girls who are part of new programs evolving in the Denver area. One of those programs “Pawsitive Connection” has paired more than 340 girls and boys with dogs to train help them to help people with disabilities.

The boys and girls come from residential treatment centers across the Denver metro area to participate in the animal-assited therapy program provided at CBR YouthConnect facilties.
Fuller said he knows there is a tremendous amount of money available across the nation that CBR YouthConnect can tap into to continue to build its animal-assisted therapy. He also knows many colleges and universities are interested in studying how CBR YouthConnect not only manages the program, but also how it achieves some amazing rates of success in turning around the lives of troubled youth.
Under the guidance of Chuck Thompson, who served many years as the chief administrator at the ranch, still serving president of the CBR Foundation, some other new programs have evolved that might be unfamiliar to folks in the La Junta area.
Fuller said Thompson connected several years ago with Tri-Care, the U.S. military’s primary healthcare provider and insurer, to help serve military families, especially during times of increased deployment of forces overseas, which splits apart families and can increase the need for help with youths. Fuller said Maj. Gen. Arnold R. “Bob” Thomas got excited about that connect and has been a member of the foundation’s board since.
More recently, Thompson and the staff discovered a highly successful youth program in the Philadelphia area called George Jr. Republic. It specializes in “preventative aftercare,” which helps youngsters in the juvenile justice system stay in their homes through a variety of specialized services. The Philadelphia juvenile justice system has helped hundreds of children avoid placement in psychiatric residential treatment facilities.
Thompson brought the program back to Colorado by first sending a group of CBR YouthConnect counselors to Pennsylvania last year to learn how it could be successfully recreated here. Thompson is now introducing the preventative aftercare program to counties across Colorado.
“The judges love it. Social workers love it, and the program is exploding,” Fuller said.
Some things have remained the same here as they always were at the ranch north of La Junta. Bob Cody, a member of the original CBR board of directors, still serves on the CBR Foundation Board. The ranch still has an executive director, Martin Masar, who has demonstrated the ability to make tough choices like his predecessor, Thompson. Under Masar‘s guidance, Colorado Boys Ranch has continued to operate in the black during the current tough economy.
Also under Masar, CBR YouthConnect has continued to maintain its heritage, and will continue to stand for Colorado Boys Ranch, Fuller said.
The rebranding as CBR YouthConnect in 2002 helped establish a new direction for Colorado Boys Ranch, including rebuilding its appeal in Colorado to philanthropic organizations that were most interested in seeing Colorado youth helped.
Under CBR YouthConnect, a unique blend of psychotherapy, environments enriched by animal-based therapy, and neuroscience has evolved to give boys here, and both boys and girls in the Denver area, a well-rounded and balanced therapy experience.
Colorado Boys Ranch today can boast of accreditation from some of the state’s and nation’s leading groups. They include:
– Joint Commission on Accreditation and Healthcare Organization;
– North Central Association Commission on Accreditation of School Improvement;
– TRICARE/TriWest, which provides healthcare services to U.S. military families;
– National Association for Children’s Residential Centers;
– Colorado Association of Family and Children’s Associations; and,
– Colorado Division of Mental Health Certification.
A recent study of former CBR youth reported a 92.5 percent treatment success rate, which was based on eight different criteria, including whether the youth was reunited iwth his family or guardians, or was able to live independently.
That kind of success can be attributed to many factors, including the fact the organization has continued to evolve to meet the needs of a changing society. But Colorado Boys Ranch (CBR YouthConnect) also can trace its success back to its humble beginnings, when it first met the needs of boys who needed a second chance at life, rather than just another long stay inside a cell block.
To read the full story of those humble beginnings, how CBR developed here, and how it changed and imprved through the 1950s, ‘60s, ‘70’s, 80’s and 90’s, pick up a copy of the 50th anniversary edition of “The Rancher,” the publication of Colorado Boys Ranch Foundation.

http://www.lajuntatribunedemocrat.com/homepage/x863180898/Exciting-future-storied-past

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4. August 2009 by admin.

The paradox of our time in history is that we have taller buildings but shorter tempers, wider Freeways , but narrower viewpoints. We spend more, but have less, we buy more, but enjoy less. We have bigger houses and smaller families, more conveniences, but less time. We have more degrees but less sense, more knowledge, but less judgment, more experts, yet more problems, more medicine, but less wellness.

We drink too much, smoke too much, spend too recklessly, laugh too little, drive too fast, get too angry, stay up too late, get up too tired, read too little, watch TV too much, and pray too seldom.

We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values. We talk too much, love too seldom, and hate too often.

We’ve learned how to make a living, but not a life. We’ve added years to life not life to years. We’ve been all the way to the moon and back, but have trouble crossing the street to meet a new neighbor.. We conquered outer space but not inner space. We’ve done larger things, but not better things.

We’ve cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul. We’ve conquered the atom, but not our prejudice. We write more, but learn less. We plan more, but accomplish less. We’ve learned to rush, but not to wait. We build more computers to hold more information, to produce more copies than ever, but we communicate less and less.

These are the times of fast foods and slow digestion, big men and small character, steep profits and shallow relationships. These are the days of two incomes but more divorce, fancier houses, but broken homes. These are days of quick trips, disposable diapers, throwaway morality, one night stands, overweight bodies, and pills that do everything from cheer, to quiet, to kill. It is a time when there is much in the showroom window and nothing in the stockroom. A time when technology can bring this letter to you, and a time when you can choose either to share this insight, or to just hit delete….

Remember; spend some time with your loved ones, because they are not going to be around forever.

Remember, say a kind word to someone who looks up to you in awe, because that little person soon will grow up and leave your side.

Remember, to give a warm hug to the one next to you, because that is the only treasure you can give with your heart and it doesn’t cost a cent.

Remember, to say, ‘ I love you ‘ to your partner and your loved ones, but most of all mean it. A kiss and an embrace will mend hurt when it comes from deep inside of you.

Remember to hold hands and cherish the moment for someday that person will not be there again..

Give time to love, give time to speak! And give time to share the precious thoughts in your mind.

AND ALWAYS REMEMBER:

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.

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15. July 2009 by admin.

Anthony was longing to show us his sketchbook. Although, when he opened it, the pages were less like a sketchbook and more like a completed work. Pages and pages of line drawings and colors, with inked pages of detail and meticulous time obviously spent. Flipping through, he stops on a two-page spread, its background filled in a royal purple.

“It’s something that makes me feel happy,” says Anthony as he tilts the book as though he were going to read us a story from its pages, “I use it to feel good every day.”
Anthony has been with us for about five months now, and he says that the art program is a great way to help him relax, “I use it to express myself, and it’s a coping skill when I get mad” Anthony tells us. He looks down again at his purple picture, “This is my favorite because of the purple, and because my nickname is Chucky,” he lists as he points to an identical drawing of the Chucky character from the Rugrats cartoon.

“I’ve always liked to draw, but here I get time to do…you know whatever I like to draw,” Anthony says as he looks away from his picture, “I love the art program. I have great, talented teachers and they help me develop skills and teach me to be constructive and create whatever things I want.”

Anthony plans on being in future art shows with his drawings, and maybe making a mural in the future. “I really want to make a big one!” he says, pointing to his sketchbook, “I have lots of ideas.” Maybe someday we will see Anthony’s art at a gallery, or used for a city museum, or maybe he will just do it for fun. After all, it does make him “happy”.

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22. June 2009 by admin.

I am constantly amazed at the life-altering connections we make every day here at CBR YouthConnect – with our programs, our youth, and the greater communities we serve. This was driven home yet again at our first Colorado Handicapped Children’s Program, sponsored by the local Otero County Health Department and hosted by CBR this spring. Accompanied by a local news reporter, I walked into the Oak Lodge building on campus, which we volunteered to the cause. I watched as the program’s physicians, therapists, receptionists and a host of others greeted and worked with the steady flow of grateful families who traveled to the clinic from the nine rural counties served by the health department. I was drawn to one little boy who was extremely affected by cerebral palsy. He sat in his wheel chair with an attentive, obedient dog beside him. The mix-breed dog wore a bright orange vest inscribed with the words “Companion Dog – I am working – PLEASE DO NOT PET.” This dog was proud, on task, and knew exactly what he was doing. I complimented the boy’s father on how the dog was so stern and well-trained. He chuckled and said that when he takes off the vest the dog is a “nut. He loves to play and run.”However, the minute the vest is strapped on, the dog becomes focused, controlled and obedient. His one and only job is the safety and well-being of the child. The father told me that the boy and dog eat, sleep and do everything together. If the child has a seizure, the dog immediately alerts the parents. If the boy falls or needs help, the dog rushes to retrieve the parents.
I was about to say what an exceptional dog this was, when the father emotionally confided, “You know. This is one of yours—from your New Leash on Life Program. Other than what he received here, he has never had any additional training. This dog saves my son’s life.” I was speechless. We know that the more than 200 dogs from local and regional animal shelters brought into our New Leash on Life program the past 12 years have made a big difference in the lives of our boys on campus. Caring for and training the dogs over a 10-week period help our youth become more responsible, compassionate individuals. What I saw before me was proof that once unwanted dogs that are lovingly trained by often hurt and neglected young men can make a huge, huge difference in the lives of those who adopt them.mNot all that long ago, this very dog sat in an animal shelter waiting for another chance at life. He was given that by a young man who also needed another chance at life. Guided by the gentle care of our staff and program, that youth was able to train this dog to become the companion, friend and lifesaver he is today to another child in need.
The reporter next to me exhaled and said, “Now, that’s a story.” And, indeed, it is—the kind of story that occurs time after time thanks to the magic of CBR and the power created in the healing relationship between a troubled young man and his dog.

— Martin Masar, Executive Director, CBR YouthConnect

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11. June 2009 by admin.

Working in the Admissions and Needs Assessment department at CBR YouthConnect affords me the opportunity to meet many people at conferences and special presentations across the United States. Some of these people include: social workers, case managers, juvenile probation officers, parents, judges, special educators, and attorneys. As often as I travel away from my own home, I am struck by the attention that our referral sources and CBRYC staff give to making sure that each child or adolescent that ends up being placed with us has a meaningful as well as therapeutic experience. That led me to think about the degree of emphasis that we place on making sure “our boys” feel as much at home during their stay at CBRYC as they would in their own homes.

Henry Van Dyke wrote a poem called “A Home Song” that summarizes well how we try to make CBRYC feel like “home” for our clients:

A Home Song
“I read within a poet’s book
A word that starred the page:
“Stone walls do not a prison make,
Nor iron bars a cage!”

Yes, that is true; and something more
You’ll find, where’er you roam,
That marble floors and gilded walls
Can never make a home.

But every house where Love abides,
And Friendship is a guest,
Is surely home, and home-sweet-home:
For there the heart can rest.”

– Henry Van Dyke

You see, I really do believe that “home is where the heart is,” and for most of the boys who end up at CBR YouthConnect, “home” has often been associated with trauma and neglect, or maybe it has never existed before in their lives. As boys arrive at CBRYC, they quickly learn that we are neither stone walls nor marble floors. We create home through our relationships with each person who steps onto our 320 acres. We build trust through everyday conversation with the boys, through helping them learn to solve problems effectively, managing their emotions appropriately, and thinking critically. Our boys learn that they are much more than clients; they are human beings worthy of dignity and respect. In the course of their time with us, they start to feel at “home.” Now, home may be defined differently by each boy who stays at CBRYC, but the common denominator for each of those boys is connection: connection to the staff, connection to the other boys, and connection to their inner strengths.

Even when our boys leave CBR YouthConnect, they know that they have someplace they can truly call “home,” where they are respected, where they always have someone who will listen to them. As Henry Van Dyke wrote, “But every house where Love abides, And Friendship is a guest, Is surely home, and home-sweet-home: For there the heart can rest.” I like to think that CBRYC is that place where love and friendship can be found for each boy, regardless of his past impressions of home.

SUBMITTED BY: NATALIE VAN NOTE

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