FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 22, 2024
Contact: Santino R. Thomas
(518) 949-4809 | [email protected]
Grant supports St. Catherine’s Access and Visitation Program.
ALBANY, N.Y. – St. Catherine’s Center for Children was recently awarded a $5,000 grant from the Albany County Bar Foundation to support St. Catherine’s Access and Visitation program. This program – one of many under St. Catherine’s Family Services umbrella – offers supervised visitation in a safe and supportive space for a non-custodial parent to visit with their child.
These funds from the Albany County Bar Foundation will allow St. Catherine’s to continue its support of at-risk families by providing them with the tools and resources needed to maintain healthy and functional home environments. Currently, the Access and Visitation program is a short-term solution which typically consists of three, one-hour visits. St. Catherine’s then provides written documentation to the court reflecting the progress of the visits. Other services of the program include clinical assessments, parent-skills training, and family support groups.
“Albany County Bar Foundation’s investment in our work is truly appreciated,” said Michele Puleo O’Hare, executive director of the Foundation of St. Catherine’s Center for Children. “These funds allow us to increase the number of families we serve, which is essential to meet the growing demand for this service in our community.”
All referrals to St. Catherine’s Access & Visitation program come exclusively through Albany County Family Court. Those who have a custody case in Albany County Family Court and are interested in receiving assistance are encouraged to reach out to their attorney or their family court judge.
“Supervised visitation not only allows parental access, but also provides support for parent-child relationships,” said Wendy Crookes, director of Prevention Services at St. Catherine’s Center for Children. “This grant supports our team and our program as we continue our work to bring families in need together.”
The goal of St. Catherine’s Access and Visitation program is to provide parents in high-risk circumstances access to their children in a safe, supervised setting. St. Catherine’s strives to meet the needs and expectations of the Capital District community by creating and implementing programs that address both new and ongoing challenges individuals, children, and families face when struggling with poverty, illness, behavioral and mental health issues, substance abuse, emergencies, abuse, neglect and trauma.
The willingness of St. Catherine’s Center for Children to embrace change and develop new services is, and will remain, our guiding philosophy as we support human service needs, throughout the region, by providing a comprehensive range of services designed to offer hope, foster growth and improve the lives of the children, families and adults we serve.
For more information, http://www.st-cath.org.
