LSS Crisis
Nursery Aims to Keep Children Safe
Program to celebrate 10 years with Open House on Tuesday, September
21
Q. What do parents do
when they are in the middle of a family crisis and need care for their
children, but have no one to cover for them and no means of paying for
care?
A. For 10 years, the
LSS Bethany Crisis Nursery has provided the emergency care and support to
these families.
Kids need a safe place to go
when parents have a medical emergency, financial or housing crisis, or
just need a break. In Duluth, the numbers demonstrate the need for such a
safe haven.
The LSS Bethany Crisis
Nursery, an early intervention and child abuse prevention program, has
been around for 10 years providing 3, 315 children with emergency child
care and serving 4,224 families via crisis phone counseling, home visits,
referrals to community services or help with diapers and clothing. This
month, the LSS Bethany Crisis Nursery will mark its decade-long
anniversary with a community Open House from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. on
Tuesday, Sept. 21 at the Crisis Nursery program office, 9239 Idaho Street
in Duluth.
"Every child deserves to be
safe," said Lynn Shubitz, program manager for Lutheran Social Service. "We
fill an important gap in service and offer a triple benefit by keeping
kids safe, strengthening families and helping families avoid more
intensive social services that they would surely need later on without our
service."
Shubitz said that the Crisis
Nursery has received an increased number of phone calls over the past year
from distressed families who need help with a variety of issues. Families
have been homeless and need care for children while parents look for
housing. Others have needed emergency day care so that they can look for a
job or retain a new job. Parents have also sought crisis counseling and
day care when they've been overwhelmed and felt that their children needed
a safe place.
In addition to two full-time
staff, volunteers form the core of the Crisis Nursery program by offering
crisis phone counseling, emergency child care, transportation, in-kind
gifts and fundraising support. Following are three examples of volunteers
and the contributions they make to kids and families through the program:
Sandy Coyle: Several
years ago, Sandy was divorced with a small child. Neighbors and others she
didn't know would stop by with groceries or a bag of clothes to help her
get by. Now a professional day care provider, Sandy gives back by offering
emergency day care and on-call phone support to parents experiencing a
crisis.
Bonnie Brost: Bonnie
became an on-call phone advocate as part of a Master's degree course on
counseling six years ago. She has since left behind the Master's program,
but continues as an on-call advocate because of the important service she
believes that it provides parents and children.
Bobbi Hoyt: Bobbi lost
her father at age four and even though her family scraped by, her mother
taught the children compassion for neighbors in need. As a secondary
school teacher in Duluth, she involves her students in service learning
with the Crisis Nursery, and also volunteers as an event organizer and
advisory board member. In April, Bobbi was named volunteer of the year by
Lutheran Social Service in Duluth. She will receive the Lutheran Social
Service Heritage Award honoring her as the statewide volunteer of the year
this month.
Shubitz said that the Crisis
Nursery depends on community support, especially following recent state
budget cuts. Community foundations, individual contributions, the United
Way and financial support from the annual Crisis Nursery auction event
held at the University of Minnesota-Duluth all help to keep the program
financially stable.
For more information about the
LSS Crisis Nursery, please contact Lynn Shubitz at 218/626-3083.
