Despite feeling blindsided, most of us now know that we are living in the midst of an unprecedented drug epidemic. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), since 1999, the rate of overdose deaths including prescription pain relievers, heroin and synthetic opioids such as fentanyl, nearly quadrupled.
Some of the steps taken to save lives include improving prescribing practices and expanding access to medication-assisted treatment and the use of Naloxone.
Medication-assisted treatment combines talk therapy and medications such as methadone or buprenorphine to treat opioid addiction. Through affordable, accessible and quality care people can recover and go on to live productive lives.
Naloxone is used to treat a narcotic overdose in an emergency situation by reversing the effects of opioids, including slowed breathing or loss of consciousness.
Notwithstanding the increased attention to lifesaving measures, there is less focus on the devastating impact of addiction on children living in families where a parent is addicted to drugs or alcohol.
Perhaps nothing drove home the reality of America’s opioid problem more than the recent photo taken in Ohio of two overdosed adults spread out in the front of a car, while one of their young grandsons looked on from the back seat.
There are more than 8 million children younger than 18 years of age that are growing up in homes with alcohol and other drug-abusing parents. These young people are likely to become alcohol or drug abusers themselves without intervention.
Parental alcoholism and drug addiction influence the use of alcohol and other drugs in several ways including increased stress and decreased parental monitoring.
Children who grow up with an addicted parent learn to distrust to survive. When unpredictability dominates a child’s life, he or she is likely to be wary, always sensing disappointment lurking nearby.
Children growing up with an addicted parent become uncomfortably accustomed to living with chaos, uncertainty and instability. When a child grows up under these conditions, they learn to guess at what normal is, with no roadmap to assist them.
Denial, secrecy, embarrassment and shame are common experiences of children who live with an addicted parent. Even seeking help outside of the family might in itself be seen as an act of betrayal, a step toward revealing the family secret.
Children who grow up with an addicted parent live with an unspoken, emotionally numbing mandate – don’t talk, don’t trust, don’t feel.
Growing up with an addicted family member leaves one with little hope that things will ever change; unless, we take steps to change it. I am reminded of a parable about the small village on the edge of a river.
One day a villager saw a baby floating down the river. He jumped in the river and saved the baby. The next day he saw two babies floating down the river. He and another villager dived in and saved them. Each day that followed, more babies were found floating down the river. The villagers organized themselves, training teams of swimmers to rescue the babies. They were soon working around the clock.
Although they could not save all the babies, the rescue squad members felt good and were lauded for saving as many babies as they could. However, one day, one of the villagers asked: “Where are all these babies coming from? Why don’t we organize a team to head upstream to find out who’s throwing the babies into the river in the first place!”
Mobilizing resources to pull babies from the river, while neglecting the one’s left behind makes no sense.
Andrew Malekoff is the Executive Director of North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center, which provides comprehensive mental health services for children from birth through 24 and their families. To find out more, visit www.northshorechildguidance.org.
As Election Day 2016 approaches I am wondering how first-time voters, especially young people, are faring. Even when my powers of concentration are sharpest after a full night’s sleep, I cannot fully trust that I can accurately differentiate substance from style, image from authenticity. As I watch and listen, I am reminded that we tend to place great emphasis on intellect, especially language skills and ability to reason and less emphasis on more personal intelligences.
Howard Gardner, author of Multiple Intelligences, identified key areas that we should look for in leaders that go beyond intellect. They include abilities to understand oneself and others, and to address profound human concerns, especially during times of crisis. These are abilities that we cannot possibly know about through scripted sound bytes and clever marketing.
We know that Donald Trump is a wealthy businessman, gifted salesman, media personality and, by all accounts, a celebrity. We know that Hillary Clinton is a lifelong public servant, former first lady, politician and advocate for many vulnerable groups; and, also a celebrated figure. Both are spouses, parents and grandparents.
We know that both lead candidates are far from perfect. Their character flaws, vulnerabilities and missteps have been revealed repeatedly in what is perhaps the bloodiest presidential campaign in memory. Let’s assume, just for the sake of argument, that the character issue is a wash. Does that make it any easier for young people placing their ballot for the first time? I think not.
We cannot forget about the fear factor – terrorism, homeland security, crime, illegal immigration, gangs, the drug trade – that the candidates and their surrogates aim at fence sitters – the independents that can be swayed one way or the other and whose collective votes can make all the difference. And, of course, there is the economy.
For the last 15 years, the income of the typical American family has been at a standstill, health outcomes for many children are poor, and globalization and technological change have made it most difficult for poorly educated Americans to achieve the peace of mind and self respect that a secure livelihood enables.
So when one checks off character, wades through media deceit and considers the fear factor and economic concerns, first-time voters are left only with faith about what they glean each candidate to really stand for in the areas that are most important to them.
Reverend Theodore Hesburgh, former president of Notre Dame University said, “Voting is a civic sacrament.”
As I consider my final decision about who to vote for, I am reminded of a line by Carlos Castaneda in his book, A Separate Reality: “Anything is one of a million paths. Look at every path closely and deliberately. Try it as many times as you think necessary. Then ask yourself, and yourself alone, one question: Does this path have a heart?”
I offer good wishes to first-time voters who have sacrificed their time and energy to make some sense out of who to support on November 8th. It is the soul searching and the struggling through that make you the true winners on Election Day. Andrew Malekoff is the Executive Director of North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center, which provides comprehensive mental health services for children from birth through 24 and their families. To find out more, visit www.northshorechildguidance.org.
Roslyn Heights, NY, September 27, 2016 — Earlier this month, Old Westbury Country Club hosted its annual Ladies Closing Luncheon. Over 100 attendees enjoyed their last official rounds of golf and tennis for the season, followed by an elaborate buffet of epicurean delights. To celebrate the occasion, the Ladies Activity Board chose the theme, “You Don’t Know How Lucky You Are!” and opted to give back to the community by donating much-needed items to a local social service organization. Committee co-chairs Laurie Beigel and Jill Kolodny, together with Linda Schulman, President of the Ladies Activity Board, designated North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center as the recipient of the clothing, books, and school supplies that were creatively packaged to form the Luncheon’s centerpieces. North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center is the leading community-based non-profit specialty children’s mental health center on Long Island.
Dr. Nellie Taylor-Walthrust, Director of The Leeds Place at North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center, said “We are so fortunate to be the recipients of the generosity and thoughtfulness of the Ladies of Old Westbury Country Club. These wonderful gifts are truly needed and will be greatly appreciated by our clients. Among the programs that will be receiving these gifts are our Good Beginnings for Babies program, which offers support, counseling, advocacy, and education to pregnant and parenting teens.”
About Us:
As the pre-eminent not-for-profit children’s mental health agency on Long Island, North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center is dedicated to restoring and strengthening the emotional well-being of children (from birth – age 24) and their families. Our highly trained staff of psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, vocational rehabilitation counselors and other mental health professionals lead the way in diagnosis, treatment, prevention, training, parent education, research and advocacy. The Guidance Center helps children and families address issues such as depression and anxiety; developmental delays; bullying; teen pregnancy; sexual abuse; teen drug and alcohol abuse; and family crises stemming from illness, death, trauma and divorce. For more than 60 years, the Guidance Center has been a place of hope and healing, providing innovative and compassionate treatment to all who enter our doors, regardless of their ability to pay. For more information about the Guidance Center, visit www.northshorechildguidance.org or call (516) 626-1971.
Pictured: One of the many beautiful centerpieces put together for children served by North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center.
Roslyn Heights, NY, September 14, 2016 — Transitions Boutique in Roslyn will host a “Day of Philanthropy” to benefit North Shore Child and Family Guidance Center on Thursday, September 29th. The contemporary boutique offers fashions for women of all ages.
Twenty percent of all sales on the 29th will be donated directly to the Guidance Center, in support of its comprehensive mental health services for children and families. As an additional incentive, all shoppers will receive a $25 gift card with each purchase.
“We are thrilled to be giving back to an agency doing such important work in our community, and to offer that same opportunity to our customers,” said Leslie Cohen, Transitions’ co-owner. “We’ve been in the fashion business for over 30 years and look forward to styling Long Island’s ladies on the 29th.”
For more information, please contact the Guidance Center’s Event Coordinator, Diana Martin, at (516) 626-1971 ext. 377 or dmartin@northshorechildguidance.org.
About Us:
As the pre-eminent not-for-profit children’s mental health agency on Long Island, North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center is dedicated to restoring and strengthening the emotional well-being of children (from birth – age 24) and their families. Our highly trained staff of psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, vocational rehabilitation counselors and other mental health professionals lead the way in diagnosis, treatment, prevention, training, parent education, research and advocacy. The Guidance Center helps children and families address issues such as depression and anxiety; developmental delays; bullying; teen pregnancy; sexual abuse; teen drug and alcohol abuse; and family crises stemming from illness, death, trauma and divorce. For more than 60 years, the Guidance Center has been a place of hope and healing, providing innovative and compassionate treatment to all who enter our doors, regardless of their ability to pay. For more information about the Guidance Center, visit www.northshorechildguidance.org or call (516) 626-1971.
Roslyn Heights, NY, September 6, 2016 — North Shore Child and Family Guidance Center will host a benefit for its Children’s Center at Nassau County Family Court on Tuesday, September 20th at Tesoro’s Ristorante, located at 967 Old Country Road in Westbury. The event will be held from 5:30-8:30 PM.
The Children’s Center provides child care and early learning opportunities to more than 1,400 children annually, ages six weeks to twelve years, while their parents or guardians are in court.
The event, co-chaired by Robert C. Mangi, Esq. and John M. Zenir, Esq., P.C., is sponsored by Abrams, Fensterman, Fensterman, Eisman, Formato, Ferrara & Wolf, LLP, Gassman Baiamonte Betts, PC, The Law Office of John M. Zenir, Esq., P.C., and Mangi & Graham LLP.
Tickets, priced at $125 per person, include cocktails and a buffet. For more information or to register, please contact the Guidance Center’s Event Coordinator, Diana Martin, at (516) 626-1971 ext. 377 or dmartin@northshorechildguidance.org.
About Us:
As the pre-eminent not-for-profit children’s mental health agency on Long Island, North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center is dedicated to restoring and strengthening the emotional well-being of children (from birth – age 24) and their families. Our highly trained staff of psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, vocational rehabilitation counselors and other mental health professionals lead the way in diagnosis, treatment, prevention, training, parent education, research and advocacy. The Guidance Center helps children and families address issues such as depression and anxiety; developmental delays; bullying; teen pregnancy; sexual abuse; teen drug and alcohol abuse; and family crises stemming from illness, death, trauma and divorce. For more than 60 years, the Guidance Center has been a place of hope and healing, providing innovative and compassionate treatment to all who enter our doors, regardless of their ability to pay. For more information about the Guidance Center, visit www.northshorechildguidance.org or call (516) 626-1971.
There were many reflections about the 2001 terrorist attack on America leading up to the 15th anniversary just a few weeks ago. Following is my reflection on the memorial service at the World Trade Center on October 28, 2001. I attended the service with a group of mental health workers who offered their support for the bereaved.
As I recall, at the end of the service there was a chill in the air as the sun disappeared behind the ruins of the World Trade Center. Renee Fleming, accompanied by the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, sang God Bless America.
Moments earlier I said goodbye to the family I stood beside during the memorial service. They sat in the back row of our section, one of scores of sections filled with thousands of folding chairs, each chair occupied by a grieving family member. I stood with my back against an iron gate so I would not block anyone’s view. The family had lost its father and husband, a decorated firefighter. The widow was a slight woman of Italian descent, probably in her late sixties.
Photos of her husband were pinned to her wool coat, and to the coats of her three children. He was handsome. He had a white moustache and a full head of silvery hair, combed straight back. When the memorial service started an hour earlier one of her sons, an off-duty police officer, asked if I would make sure that no one obstructed his mother’s view. He said, “You can see how short she is.”
The service began with a processional that included His Eminence Edward Cardinal Egan, Archbishop of New York. Then, police officer Daniel Rodriguez of the NYPD sang The Star Spangled Banner. He had become a national presence by appearing in his dress blues and singing the national anthem at Yankee Stadium before the 97th World Series that pitted the Yankees against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Everyone was on his or her feet. A massive wall of mourners rose around the tiny figure to my right. When I saw her struggling to climb, I took her arm and helped her up onto a folding chair. I told her that she could grab on to me. “Hold on to my shoulders,” I said. She hesitated. I told her, “Don’t worry you won’t knock me over.”
I could feel her trembling as she removed her right hand from my shoulder and fumbled for a tissue inside her coat pocket. I reached into my pocket and handed her a handkerchief.
When I was picking out my clothes earlier in the morning I had come across several unopened packets of white handkerchiefs. They belonged to my father who died seven years earlier. As I got dressed, I thought that today my father would want somebody who needed it to have one of his handkerchiefs. At first she refused my offer, not wanting to impose. I urged her, “Please, take it. It’s okay.”
Ten years later, my father’s handkerchiefs remain tucked into my dresser drawer – a daily reminder of when I joined a parade of broken hearts. Sometimes I close my eyes, think back and try to recall what things felt like before that sunny fall morning at ground zero.
Andrew Malekoff is the Executive Director of North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center, which provides comprehensive mental health services for children from birth through 24 and their families. To find out more, visit www.northshorechildguidance.org.
In August, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo announced a coordinated effort by several state agencies and institutions to prevent underage drinking on college campuses and in college towns.
Then on Sept. 7, he signed the “brunch bill,” an amendment to allow restaurants and bars to serve alcohol at 10 a.m. on Sundays, two hours earlier than was previously legal [“Approval for booze at brunch,” News, Sept. 8].
In addition, restaurants will be eligible for permits to sell alcohol beginning at 8 a.m. up to 12 times a year in areas outside of New York City.
Young people take risks and test limits. Cuomo aims to deter them from boozing it up, but they will be emboldened by the more flexible hours in which they can now get access to alcohol. Not good, Guv.
Andrew Malekoff, Long Beach
Editor’s note: The writer is the executive director of the nonprofit children’s mental health agency North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center in Roslyn Heights.
Patrick J. Kennedy is a former member of the U.S. House of Representatives who has struggled with mental illness and addiction for most of his life. He has become a leading force in the passage of the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008, a U.S. law that states that it is illegal to treat diseases of the brain differently than those of any other part of the body. The battle ahead is for the law to be enforced in the face of health insurers who stand to profit by denying the full range of coverage for people suffering with mental illness and addictions.
In his 2015 book, A Common Struggle: A Personal Journey Through the Past and Future of Mental Illness and Addiction, Kennedy offers personal reflections on the impact of trauma, addiction and mental illness on the extended Kennedy clan. He talks about the rocky relationship he had with his dad, the late U.S. Senator Edward “Ted” Kennedy and about his mom Joan’s battle with alcoholism.
At the heart of the memoir are Kennedy’s own revelations about his co-occurring mental illness and prescription drug and alcohol addiction, his path to recovery, and his ascendance to becoming, arguably, the nation’s leading advocate for parity and equity in mental health and addiction care. Kennedy has fought hard to lift the veil of ignorance about mental illness and addiction and to expose the health insurance industry’s tradition of denying and restricting access to care for individuals with brain illness.
Kennedy radiates a fire for eradicating stigma and ending discrimination against people with brain illness. According to One Mind, a nonprofit organization he co-founded, that is dedicated to benefiting all affected by brain illness and injury, “One of the harmful effects of stigma is that it can lead to discrimination. It could be as obvious as someone making a negative remark about your mental illness or as subtle as someone avoiding you because they think you could be unstable, violent or dangerous.”
On their website, One Mind lists some of the ways that these attitudes can be damaging and even dangerous. For example:
Reluctance to seek help or treatment due to the labeling
Lack of understanding by family, friends, co-workers or others you know
Fewer opportunities for work, school or social activities or trouble finding housing
Bullying, physical violence or harassment
Health insurance that doesn’t adequately cover your mental illness treatment
The belief that you’ll never be able to succeed at certain challenges or that you can’t improve your situation
Kennedy rightly frames the inequities that people with mental illness and addictions face as a matter of civil rights.
What he has accomplished, which he freely acknowledges is the result of a collective effort, has already gone a long way to wiping out stigma and increasing people’s access to mental health and addictions care. His goal, he states, is to launch “a new civil rights movement, to finally force medical equality for diseases of the brain.”
Tens of millions of Americans owe Patrick Kennedy a debt of gratitude for leading the way. Now all of us must carry the ball forward by treating children and adults with brain illnesses with dignity; and demanding that government enforce parity and equity for all and put an end to discrimination.
Andrew Malekoff is the Executive Director of North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center, which provides comprehensive mental health services for children from birth through 24 and their families. To find out more, visit www.northshorechildguidance.org.
Roslyn Heights, NY, August 1, 2016 — North Shore Child and Family Guidance Center (NSC&FGC) held its 3rd Annual Ladies Night Out event Thursday evening. For the past three summers, NSC&FGC’s Business Advisory Council has partnered with Equinox, located at 90 Northern Blvd, Greenvale, to deliver a variety of spa and beauty services and raffle opportunities to the women of our local communities to raise awareness of the programs and services of the Guidance Center.
More than 40 women attended the event, which raised in excess of $2000 to support children’s mental health and eradicate stigma. Attendees were treated to hand and chair massages. Long Island makeup artists Rebelle with a Gloss provided makeovers, while Huntington salon Salone di Bianca provided blow-outs and hair styling. Guests savored delicious small bites from Wat Chu Wan Wonton and sipped wine while they mingled. “The Guidance Center is so grateful to the staff at Equinox for their ongoing partnership and to the women in the community for their support of our mental health services for children and families,” said Board member Jo-Ellen Hazan, in her welcoming remarks.
About Us:
As the pre-eminent not-for-profit children’s mental health agency on Long Island, North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center is dedicated to restoring and strengthening the emotional well-being of children (from birth – age 24) and their families. Our highly trained staff of psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, vocational rehabilitation counselors and other mental health professionals lead the way in diagnosis, treatment, prevention, training, parent education, research and advocacy. The Guidance Center helps children and families address issues such as depression and anxiety; developmental delays; bullying; teen pregnancy; sexual abuse; teen drug and alcohol abuse; and family crises stemming from illness, death, trauma and divorce. For more than 60 years, the Guidance Center has been a place of hope and healing, providing innovative and compassionate treatment to all who enter our doors, regardless of their ability to pay. For more information about the Guidance Center, visit www.northshorechildguidance.org or call (516) 626-1971.
NSC&FGC Board Member, Matilde Broder, receiving a makeover from Rebelle with a Gloss makeup artist, Jenn Reardon.
Event participants trying their luck for exciting raffle prizes.
Roslyn Heights, NY, July 13, 2016 — North Shore Child and Family Guidance Center (NSC&FGC) has received a $4,000 grant from the Manhasset Community Fund (MCF) to further its core children’s mental health programming. MCF has a proud history of supporting local programs that are making a difference in the lives of Manhasset residents. NSC&FGC has been providing services to Manhasset, its surrounding communities, and all of Nassau County for more than 63 years, and has been a humble recipient of the Fund’s generosity for many years. The Guidance Center is a state-wide leader in children’s mental health service delivery – therapeutic, supportive, and educational services.
The agency will be allocating MCF’s funding to the ongoing expansion of its triage, emergency, and high-risk services. There has been a dramatic increase in psychiatric emergencies referred to The Guidance Center due to several factors: (1) inpatient hospitalization stays have shortened and are more difficult to access, (2) availability of inpatient and day treatment beds for children and youth have declined, (3) fewer agencies and private practitioners are readily available to respond, and (4) emergency room visits have become more time consuming and emotionally hazardous. “There is a clear and present need for a community-based service that rapidly responds to emergencies and works toward stabilization,” said Andrew Malekoff, LCSW, CASAC, Executive Director of NSG&FGC.
About Us:
As the pre-eminent not-for-profit children’s mental health agency on Long Island, North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center is dedicated to restoring and strengthening the emotional well-being of children (from birth – age 24) and their families. Our highly trained staff of psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, vocational rehabilitation counselors and other mental health professionals lead the way in diagnosis, treatment, prevention, training, parent education, research and advocacy. The Guidance Center helps children and families address issues such as depression and anxiety; developmental delays; bullying; teen pregnancy; sexual abuse; teen drug and alcohol abuse; and family crises stemming from illness, death, trauma and divorce. For more than 60 years, the Guidance Center has been a place of hope and healing, providing innovative and compassionate treatment to all who enter our doors, regardless of their ability to pay. For more information about the Guidance Center, visit www.northshorechildguidance.org or call (516) 626-1971.
Andrew Malekoff, executive director and CEO of North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center. Photo credit: Jason Green
Violence—random, sudden, illogical, and lethal—has become a fact of life. Shootings and acts of terror, homegrown and imported, with or without racial or religious overtones, have become gruesome signposts along a seemingly endless path of public and private horrors. They are taking a toll on our children.
No child should have to wake up each day as if he or she was on 24-hour-a-day guard duty. But in the United States this is the reality.
We can no longer think of these as isolated incidents, aberrations or confined to urban settings. Denial, an emotional trap door, is not a viable escape in a world where a sense of imminent threat is ever present.
In the immediate aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attack, writer Jeph Loeb and artist J. Scott Campbell produced a nine-framed cartoon entitled “Please Stand By,” that featured a very young girl watching cartoons.
By the third and fourth frames, the image on the screen changed to a live feed of the Twin Towers ablaze. As the little girl stood transfixed, stuffed animal in hand, the commentator announced, “We interrupt this program to take you live…,” the little girl turned away and called, “Mommy…” The next three frames began with her mother dropping a basket of laundry. Then, with her face contorted in anguish, she embraced her daughter to shield her from the unrelenting images. The final frame is a close up of the little girl asking, “Mommy, when are the cartoons gonna come back on?”
Among those who are left in the wake of violent acts are the survivors – friends and family members of victims, who live with the emptiness, frustration, and rage of incomprehensible death by violence.
Earlier this month, as the mother of the oldest child of Alton Sterling, the black man fatally shot by Baton Rouge, Louisiana police, expressed sorrow and outrage at his death, Cameron Sterling, 15, the oldest of Sterling’s children wept inconsolably by her side, for the entire world to see and experience his heartbreak.
One day later a St. Paul, Minnesota Montessori school cafeteria supervisor Philando Castile met a similar fate. Just one day after his shooting, five police officers, protecting hundreds of people in Dallas, Texas, who were peacefully protesting the two shootings, were gunned down and murdered, ambush-style, by a lone shooter who was fueled by racial hatred and bent on misguided revenge.
Beyond those left in the direct wake of violence are growing numbers of young people who are fed a regular diet of horrific episodes of violence through graphic media accounts such as the live streaming of a bloodied and gasping Philando Castile, filmed by his girlfriend Diamond Reynolds who wanted the world to join her in bearing witness as he took his last breaths.
In the aftermath of trauma, children (and others) feel fearful, unprotected, hyper-vigilant, and hopeless and on their own; similar to orphans who feel they must take care themselves.
We are living in world gone mad, a place where the rich diversity of colors, shades, languages, orientations, beliefs and rituals should be shared and celebrated rather than drawn as battle lines. The answers do not lie in books of psychology or popular bromides, or in aspiring national leaders who have proven to be untrustworthy.
The answer lies in being mindful – paying attention on purpose, making connections with one another and building a sense of communality.
Andrew Malekoff is the Executive Director of North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center, which provides comprehensive mental health services for children from birth through 24 and their families. To find out more, visit www.northshorechildguidance.org.
Once upon a time there was widespread belief that the human brain was fully developed by the time a child reached five or six years old. We know, for example, that the amygdala, the part of the brain that is responsible for instinctual reactions such as fear and aggressive behavior, does fully develop early. However, thanks to new technologies such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), neuroscience researchers have discovered that, although 95 percent of the brain’s architecture is formed by the time a child is six-years-old, that there are significant changes that occur around the time of the onset of puberty, between 10 and 13 years of age.
Scientists have discovered that during adolescence there is a rapid increase in the connections between the brain cells and refinement of brain pathways and that these changes are critical for the development of coordinated thought and action. As my colleague Craig Haen put it, “In the teen years, young people are going through a software upgrade, neurologically, in which circuitry is being consolidated, networks are being reorganized, connections are being made stronger and more expedient and unused pathways are wearing away.”
Changes in the brain take place in the context of many other factors including early childhood experiences and environment. Scientists are continuing to look into the development of the brain and the relationship between the changes taking place, behavior, and health.
The stakes are great during the teenage years. There is a perplexing contradiction between adolescents reaching the peak of physical health, strength and mental capability and, at the same time, facing greater risks and hazards than ever before. Parents walk a fine line between supporting their children’s independence and protecting them from harm.
Child and adolescent brain studies affirm that the brain is hard-wired for social interaction and for attaching and bonding with caregivers. Despite all the scientific advances, according to leading brain researcher Jay Giedd, people might be disappointed to know that the “best advice we can give is things that our grandmother could have told us generations ago: to spend loving, quality time with our children.”
Teenagers hunger for significant relationships with adults who care about them. This belief has been validated by social scientist Ellen Galinsky, who interviewed more than a thousand children and found that teens longed for more time with their parents, even when they seemed to be pushing them away. Galinsky concluded , “Even though the public perception is about building bigger and better brains, what the research shows is that it’s the relationships, it’s the connections, it’s the people in children’s lives who make the biggest difference.”
If a child’s job is to explore and a parent’s job is to protect, understanding changes in adolescent brain development offers an opportunity to support and create environments that promote positive peer experiences, where teens can safely explore and experiment and avoid behavior that can harm themselves or others.
Andrew Malekoff is the Executive Director of North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center, which provides comprehensive mental health services for children from birth through 24 and their families. To find out more, visit www.northshorechildguidance.org.
May 27, 2016, Long Island Weekly, an Anton Media Publication
At North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center, the vast majority of our clients are from Nassau County communities, but we recently had the opportunity to work with a young girl who came to Long Island from Haiti.
Thirteen-year old Anabelle traveled to the United States to receive life-saving surgery for an advanced stage of scoliosis at Shriners Hospital for Children in Philadelphia. Her condition was so serious that she would not have survived in Haiti. She was placed with a generous and loving host family that lived in Nassau County—far from home for a frightened and ailing teenager.
After about two weeks in the U.S., Anabelle became very withdrawn and refused to communicate with the family in any way. They weren’t sure how to help Anabelle, who didn’t speak English. The family was desperate to figure out a way to ease her fears and draw her out.
During this period the host family’s son, a recent college graduate, was working as a volunteer tutor at North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center’s Westbury office, known as the Leeds Place. He shared with his mom the broad scope of the work that we do with a very diverse population. She decided to call the director of the Leeds Place, Dr. Nellie Taylor-Walthrust, to brainstorm about what could be done to help Anabelle.
The discussion led to a plan that included one of our Haitian Creole-speaking outreach workers, Marmeline Martin, who has extensive experience working with special needs children and in training foster parents. Nellie asked the host mom if Marmeline could make a home visit to meet her and Anabelle. She was so happy and said, “Absolutely!” Then she asked, with a look of surprise on her face, “You make home visits?”
She was assured that we do, and added that seeing Anabelle in the home environment would be better, at least to start, than bringing her to an unfamiliar setting.
Marmeline readily agreed and made her way to the home where she met Anabelle who was sitting in her wheelchair, head bowed, with a somber look on her face. Marmeline asked if she could speak with Anabelle alone, and the family agreed it was fine.
At first, Anabelle would not speak to Marmeline. But in a short period of time, she opened up and revealed feeling homesick and alone, sharing that she wished to see her mother and the rest of her family back in Haiti. As Marmeline continued to speak to Anabelle in Creole, Anabelle began to brighten up, feeling reassured because she could be understood and feel comfortable enough to express her feelings. Marmeline asked if it would make her feel better if she came back to visit with her and she nodded in agreement.
Marmeline then met with the host mom to reassure her that Anabelle wasn’t in need of psychotherapy but was feeling low due to the separation from her family. She promised that she would continue her visits and that Anabelle was going to be fine.
On the next visit Marmeline brought some Haitian music to listen to that reminded Anabelle of being home. As the weekly visits continued, Anabelle began to smile and became more engaged with the family.
We reassured the host mom that she was caring for Anabelle in a loving manner and that what she needed to understand was that Anabelle’s adjustment to a new culture, environment and language was naturally frightening to the teen.
Cultural competency and the flexibility of home visits are key components of providing community-based mental health care, whether preventive care as in the case of Anabelle, or more intensive treatment for children with serious emotional disturbances.
As Nellie said, reflecting back, “It’s the small things that often make a world of difference.” Andrew Malekoff is the executive director of North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center (www.northshorechildguidance.org), which provides comprehensive mental health services for children from birth through 24 and their families.
“One person can ignite a fire that can light the entire forest”
On March 30, 2016 I had the pleasure of meeting a true hero – Dr. Bennet Omalu. He was the keynoter at the Head Injury Association’s Awareness Sports Forum at the Hyatt Regency Long Island.
In 2002 Dr. Omalu discovered the presence of degenerative disease in the brain of National Football League (NFL) player Mike Webster. He named the brain disease chronic traumatic encephalopathy, known as CTE. His discovery has proven to be a powerful pebble that has generated waves throughout the troubled waters of youth, college and professional football, as well as other contact sports.
Dr. Omalu was portrayed by Will Smith in the 2015 film Concussion, based on his book of the same name. Prior to that, he was prominently featured in the public affairs television program Frontline and in the book, League of Denial: The NFL, Concussions and the Battle for Truth.
Although the focus of the head injury forum was to raise awareness to protect school-aged athletes from concussions, Dr. Omalu transcended his role as a forensic scientist, inspiring an audience of several hundred people with his deep faith and fortitude.
He began his remarks by recalling that he was born in war-torn Nigeria and describing how he suffered as a child from malnutrition. He revealed that, “Because of the consequences of war, I became a weakling and introvert who was ridiculed.”
The turning point in his life came, he remembered, when he realized that “with knowledge you can do all things.” This realization ignited what became a lifetime thirst for learning and quest for truth. In fact, he has earned eight degrees and certifications.
Omalu explained that both science and faith seek truth. The role of faith, he said, “is the manifestation of things we do not see,” which was the case with Mike Webster and the rest of the world. Dr. Omalu said that it was his deep faith in humanity that led him to wonder about the cause of Webster’s destitution, deterioration and death, and, to “speak” to Webster’s spirit during the autopsy.
“Whatever happens to the least of us happens to all of us,” he told the rapt audience in Hauppauge; and, “what we do for the least of us, we do for all of us.” And, so began his spiritual relationship with the deceased Mike Webster.
Omalu has faced enormous obstacles as a scientist. He shared that he was smeared by National Institute of Health which said he was not a reputable doctor. And he was also defamed by the NFL that did all they could to stonewall his discovery and disassociate the notion that repeated blows to the head were the cause of a degenerative brain disease that led to the premature deaths, including suicides, of scores of former players and counting.
Dr. Omalu spoke to the challenge of working in a context of “conformational intelligence” which he explained as when one’s “mind conforms to the expectations of society” and not necessarily truth. “How does conformational intelligence hold down a society?” he asked.
Omalu—who portrayed himself as an “outlier,” someone who operates outside of the box—concluded his remarks by stating, “One person can ignite a fire that can light the entire forest.”
We owe Dr. Omalu a debt of gratitude for his discovery and for his quest for truth, against all odds.
We must demand that those in power in youth, interscholastic and intercollegiate sports protect our children; and we must help our children, from an early age, to think critically and to develop the good sense and courage, without shame, to speak the truth and break the silence.
Bio: Andrew Malekoff is the Executive Director of North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center, which provides comprehensive mental health services for children from birth through 24 and their families. To find out more, visit www.northshorechildguidance.org.
These are words that ring true for thousands of families across Long Island who have been unsuccessful in accessing timely and affordable mental health and addictions care through their health insurer.
How do I know this? From the stories that people tell us at North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center, a 63-year-old children’s mental health agency in Nassau County.
Health insurers are mandated by government to offer panels of providers so that families can find easily accessible, quality care for their loved ones; and not only for physical illnesses. This requirement is known as network adequacy, referring to adequate networks of care.
The problem of access for mental health care, however, is more complex and may begin with a family’s hesitance to ask for help and to reveal that they are living with someone who is suffering from a mental illness. Families coping with mental illness or addiction do not as readily seek help as they might for heart disease, cancer or diabetes. Why? Because of stigma and the shame it generates. When there is a mass shooting for example, and the perpetrator is labeled mentally ill, it casts a shadow on all people with mental illness, despite the fact that mentally ill persons are disproportionately the victims of violence.
In the United States we have chronically failed to treat illnesses above the neck the same as illnesses below the neck. For example, a parent who would not hesitate to reach out for help if their child was in an accident and appeared to have broken an arm, might wait weeks and months, if not longer, to ask for help if it was a mental health or substance abuse problem.
What makes all this so insidious is that once a parent picks up the phone to ask for help, and they are told repeatedly by providers, “I’m sorry I don’t accept that insurance any longer, I only accept cash,” there is a chance they will give up.
When a parent gives up, they risk their child deteriorating further. This is also true for adults with mental illness and increases the odds that they will ultimately need more costly care or confinement; hospitalization or incarceration.
What to do? Gov. Cuomo created the Department of Financial Services, charged with the responsibility to monitor private health insurers to ensure that they have adequate networks of care as a condition of their license. This means they must demonstrate the consistent ability to provide timely access to care for individuals and their families.
Just this week parents who came to the Guidance Center after taking their child to the emergency room, told us that they called no less than 20 different therapists or agencies and were turned down by all of them. Finally they called another hospital that made the referral to us. We turn no one away for inability to pay.
This is an all too familiar story that we hear frequently and that my colleagues from sister agencies tell me as well. You might wonder why this happening.
Private health insurers pay substandard rates of reimbursement for mental health and addictions care, as compared to Medicaid; sometimes 50 percent or less the than the Medicaid rate. Consequently, participating providers bail out because they cannot afford to accept such low rates. The insurers fail to carefully monitor their lists and the state fails to monitor and regulate the insurers.
In the case of delayed care for a child, this represents corporate and state child abuse.
I have reached out repeatedly to the governor, attorney general and numerous state legislators to issue a call to action to demand that DFS do their job. There is sympathy, but no action.
Malekoff is executive director of North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center in Roslyn Heights.
If you subscribe to Long Island Business News: http://libn.com/2016/03/04/malekoff-li-families-cant-afford-to-wait-for-mental-health-services/
This story was originally published in Long Island Business News.
The poisoning of an American city: Where is the outrage about the incomprehensible crime against the children and families of Flint?
I have worked for the welfare of children for 45 years, starting as a big brother in New Brunswick, New Jersey when I was an undergraduate at Rutgers College and, after graduating, as a VISTA volunteer in Grand Island, Nebraska. Then I went on to get my masters in social work at Adelphi, and I’ve worked in the children’s mental health field on Long Island ever since.
I’ve marched, testified before government bodies for social causes including war, police brutality, school shootings, mental health, addictions and funding for human services. I participated in relief efforts after a number of large-scale disasters such as 9/11 and Hurricane Sandy.
In each case, no matter how urgent the need, how disorienting the circumstances or how depressing the situation I’ve always tried to make some sense out of what happened, even in the most incomprehensible of situations such as the Newtown shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School.
Early on in my work life, someone suggested that if you are passionate about something and wish to be an advocate you must ask yourself these two questions: Why am I awake? And how do I relate to those who are asleep? In an attempt to wake people up, I’ve written a number of opinion pieces for publications like Newsday to better synthesize my own thoughts and feelings and convey messages that might educate and awaken others. In most cases I found colleagues and neighbors who shared my outrage and stood with and by me on issues that concerned me.
But, as I reach my 65th year in a few months, I must say that although I never ranked the private and public horrors that have unfolded in my lifetime, I believe the poisoning of Flint, Michigan to be the most incomprehensible of all. And although there is outrage and protest, I find it subdued in contrast to other tragedies I have witnessed.
The poisoning of an American city and all of its children, mostly racial minorities, is an act born of government bureaucrats’ wish to cut costs and what filmmaker Michael Moore said would have been considered ethnic cleansing by our government leaders if it happened in any other country but our own.
There is news coverage and there is finally some action being taken, but it feels muted to me as compared to Sandy Hook, for example. The residents of an entire American city were poisoned for 19 months. There were warning signs, yet government officials told the citizenry that the water was fine. It wasn’t until researchers pointed to elevated levels of lead in children under five after the switch to a cheaper water supply that any changes were made. After 19 months of poisoning.
We are all too familiar in New York with government corruption. We’ve been treated to a parade of legislators and public officials charged with and convicted of bribery, fraud, conspiracy, racketeering, money laundering, tax evasion and such. But poisoning children?
If it were my children who were poisoned I can only imagine what I might do. Yet none of the Flint parents are acting on the murderous rage that I think I would feel and expect they may also feel. I guess it is because acting on such impulses would do nothing to help their children.
Yet, how do you go on knowing that your unborn child, infant, toddler or school-age child with a still-developing brain will be damaged for life with cognitive impairments? How do you go on knowing that their intellectual potential will be significantly limited because government bureaucrats were looking for a shortcut to balance the budget? What can you say to a parent that might offer them some solace?
I can’t think of a thing. Can you?
Malekoff is executive director of the nonprofit children’s mental health agency North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center in Roslyn Heights, NY.
Andrew Malekoff, executive director of the North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center
Andrew Malekoff, executive director of the North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center.
What happens when something that affects children’s lives is widespread but hidden in plain sight? What if it is something that creates untold heartache in lives that are already unnecessarily damaged? It should be addressed and corrected. Yet, because it is hidden from our collective consciousness it remains unaddressed, it persists, and this has consequences.
I am referring to the plight of countless middle-class families with children who have mental health and substance abuse problems and who have health insurance but cannot gain access to timely care.
Under a government mandate called network adequacy, commercial health insurers, used by many working, middle-class families, are required by license to offer adequate networks of providers (child psychiatrists, psychotherapists) for families confronting mental health and substance abuse problems. In other words, they are expected, as per their insurance plan, to provide ready access to a provider near where policyholders live. The reality, though, is that too often they do not.
Why? Because commercial health insurers that pay substandard reimbursement rates have too few in-network providers. Their low rates of reimbursement serve as a disincentive for providers, including community-based mental health agencies that should be providing universal access to care, to enroll in their networks. Consequently, many community-based agencies, along with those in private practice, will accept only higher paying Medicaid insurance.
The gap between reimbursement rates for commercial health insurance and Medicaid is vast. In some cases, for example, the rate paid to providers by commercial insurers is half the rate paid by Medicaid. Although a health insurer is expected to help families find an in-network provider, most often they do not. They simply give them a list of names, and few if any of those providers accept the insurance because the rates of reimbursement don’t come close to covering the cost of services. This then frustrates already anxious parents who have had to work up the courage to ask for help.
It is very difficult for a parent to pick up the phone and seek help when their child is suffering from mental illness or addiction. When they are repeatedly turned away by their supposedly in-network providers, who tell them “I no longer accept that insurance,” it is devastating. When a child is denied access to timely care for mental illness or addiction the results can be life-threatening.
A few weeks ago a mother seeking mental health care for her teenager came to us at North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center and told a familiar story.
“It’s very hard. Decent psychiatrists don’t take new patients and the rest don’t take our insurance. Most of them don’t take your insurance,” she said. The intake worker asked her how many turned her down before she called us. She said 20.
What needs to be done? The New York State Department of Financial Services, a relatively new state agency formed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo, has regulatory jurisdiction over insurance companies. However, in my experience, their inaction on this issue indicates that they do little, if anything, to monitor network adequacy.
Substandard rates of reimbursement (e.g. the gap between Medicaid and commercial insurance rates) may be considered a violation of the Affordable Care Act’s parity protections, which require health insurance companies to treat annual or lifetime dollar limits for mental health and substance abuse the same as they do medical benefits. If that is the case, the attorney general also has the power to address this matter if DFS will not. But what remedy is there if they do not take action?
The New York State Comptroller’s Office has the primary responsibility to ensure that state agencies such as DFS are using taxpayer money efficiently and effectively. If DFS does not investigate the issue of network adequacy, then they are open to the scrutiny of a state audit as it relates to their effectiveness in the use of taxpayer dollars to properly monitor insurance companies under their jurisdiction.
Although mental health legislation, The Helping Families in Mental Health Crisis Act, has been introduced in Congress, it will do little good if families cannot find a provider. The act will only work when the issue of access to care is monitored and enforced. It’s time for DFS to do its job and launch an investigation of any commercial insurance company suspected of not having an adequate network of providers. It could truly save lives.
Andrew Malekoff is the executive director of the North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center in Roslyn Heights, a nonprofit that provides comprehensive mental health services for children from birth through age 24 and their families. To find out more, visit www.northshorechildguidance.org.
Jordan and mom Patty in Soho, New York Fashion District.
Jordan and mom Patty in Soho, New York Fashion District.Although I’ve written before about bullying in this column, none of my experiences or research prepared me for my friend Patty Underwood’s reflections about walking the streets of New York with her teenage daughter Jordan, an incredibly talented theater student from the Boston area. I had the pleasure to meet Jordan on a trip to Boston a few months before she departed for New York City to begin her freshman year at NYU. But this story is about more than bullying. It is about a mother’s love and a child’s resiliency.
Patty’s story, painstakingly recalled and beautifully reported, will surely touch many a raw nerve. Her story requires no editorial comment from me, which would only dilute an intimate experience that speaks for itself. Patty granted me permission to share her story with you, my readers. Patty told me, “Walking with Jordan allowed me to be in her shoes. I heard her talk about this experience before, but it was the first time I really experienced it.” She added, “Jordan is all for letting people hear her story.”
Patty Underwood: “As we walked to the MOMA, I glared at the middle-aged woman who was looking at my 19-year old daughter like she was the circus fat woman. The woman appeared to be with her own thin teenagers; as she glanced at them, her face seemed to be mixed with wonder and disgust. I could feel the judgment exuding from her eyeballs, and the anger in me surged back with fire in my eyes. On the next block a group of construction workers smirked and cat-called. Then the teenagers wearing tiny belly-revealing tank tops gawked at her tummy that also peaked out.
“Every New York City block we walked brought eyes that bore holes in my daughter’s body and I was feeling a mix of distress, rage, worry and pure exhaustion. How the hell does someone survive the unrelenting visual persecution and surging negative energy? By the end of the day, I wanted to crawl under a rock and it wasn’t even me that was at the receiving end of this attack. My daughter kept saying, ‘What’s wrong?’ ‘Do you not want to be here?’ ‘You seem distant.’ I told her I was just tired from the long day in the city.
“Truthfully, I was trying to swallow the impact of her walking out the door every day. How does she do it? Who is there to protect her? What is this doing to her brain? I felt paralyzed by witnessing humanity try to crush my daughter’s spirit. At one point I suggested that maybe she not show so much cleavage, and she railed back, ‘Oh, just because I have big boobs it’s okay to comment about them? As a social worker, mom, you should know better. What, are you now going to say that women who get raped asked for it!?’
“We continued to walk, her with her head high and mine stuck down, avoidant of the imminent look. My daughter, it seems, has come to terms with the battle she faces when she walks out the door. ‘Mom, if you weren’t here, I would respond, tell them to f*** off.’ I am reminded of the practice she has had at facing the bullying since middle school. And the barrier it created; and the friends who love her unconditionally. And the dance teachers who see the beauty in how her body moves. And the 10,000 likes she got on Tumbler after posting a video of her dancing.
“Plus-size models are walking the runways and appearing in fashion magazines and Ashley Tipton won Project Runway. [Tipton is a 24-year-old clothing designer.] Tipton is an amazing woman who is advocating for the underprivileged and the eradication of all types of discrimination. Yes, she’s a fighter, fiercely protective of those whose human rights are under attack, passionate, creative, funny, singer, actor, dancer, black belt carrying, plus-sized and beautiful. Jordan is all this and more.”
Thank you Patty and Jordan.
Andrew Malekoff is the executive director of North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center, which provides comprehensive mental health services for children from birth through 24 and their families. To find out more, visit www.northshorechildguidance.org. The views expressed in this column are not necessarily those of the publisher or Anton Media Group.
This column original appeared in Anton Media Group. Click here for Anton’s website.
Peer pressure can play a major role in the sending of texts, with parties being a major contributing factor.
A few years ago, in an effort to better understand where sex and social media intersect with respect to attitudes and behavior, The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy conducted a survey of teens and young adults. The study measured the proportion of them who are posting sexually suggestive text and images. There were a total of 1,280 respondents—653 teens (ages 13 to 19) and 627 young adults (ages 20 to 26).
The survey found that a significant number of the 13 to 19 year olds have electronically sent, or posted online, nude or semi-nude pictures or video of themselves. Sexually suggestive messages via text, email or IM (instant message) were even more prevalent according to the survey. Seventy-five-percent of the teen respondents and 71 percent of young adults said sending sexually suggestive content “can have serious negative consequences,” yet they continue this behavior despite substantial personal safety and legal risks.
In the past few months on Long Island, sexting has been all over the news, including arrests and school suspensions of teens charged with sexting and viewing these messages. Parents, caregivers and other relevant people in kids’ lives need to be attuned to this behavior and be prepared to address it.
Despite the influence of peers, which is not all negative, this is only one part of a four-part community that includes family, larger community and media influences, all of which have demonstrable effects on adolescents’ sexual attitudes and behavior and all of which interact in a complex way. For example, beyond the peer group are information and images transmitted by the media that may typify values that are detrimental to young people’s self-image and health.
In families in which sexuality is not a taboo subject and related discussions occur quite naturally throughout childhood, pathways are forged for ongoing dialogue about all aspects of sexuality. If parental influence is strong enough—that is, if their relationships with their children are warm and close and their parenting style is authoritative—it can be a powerful protector against negative peer influence.
The American Academy of Pediatrics offers some good tips for talking to you kids about texting (go to www.aap.org and search for “sexting”):
• Talk to your kids, even if the issue hasn’t directly impacted your community. “Have you heard of sexting?” “Tell me what you think it is.” For the initial part of the conversation, it is important to first learn what your child’s understanding is of the issue and then add to it an age-appropriate explanation (see next bullet).
• Use examples suited to your child’s age. For younger children with cell phones who do not yet know about sex, alert them that text messages should never contain pictures of people—kids, teens or adults—without their clothes on, kissing or touching each other in ways that they’ve never seen before. For older children, use the term “sexting” and give more specifics about sex acts they may know about. For teens, be very specific that “sexting” often involves pictures of a sexual nature and is considered pornography.
• Make sure kids of all ages understand that sexting is serious and considered a crime in many jurisdictions. If they “sext,” there will be serious consequences, quite possibly involving the police, suspension from school, and notes on the texter’s permanent record that could hurt their chances of getting into college or getting a job.
• Experts have noted that peer pressure can play a major role in the sending of texts, with parties being a major contributing factor. Collecting cell phones at gatherings of tweens and teens is one way to reduce this temptation.
• Monitor headlines and the news for stories about sexting that illustrate the very real consequences for both senders and receivers of these images. “Have you seen this story?” “What did you think about it?” “What would you do if you were this child?” Rehearse ways they can respond if asked to participate in inappropriate texting.
• Encourage school and town assemblies to educate parents, teachers and students.
An important and related problem is that with social networking there is no respite. Social media has a 24-7 quality that leaves many teens feeling that there is nowhere to turn and no escape—not at home, not on vacation, no place.
Social media has opened the door to new avenues of sexual expression and new challenges for families, health educators and human services professionals. Don’t miss this opportunity to educate your youngster about its dangers.
Andrew Malekoff is the executive director of North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center, which provides comprehensive mental health services for children from birth through 24 and their families. To find out more, visitwww.northshorechildguidance.org.
This column original appeared in Anton Media Group. Click here for Anton’s website.
Guidance Center’s Dancing With Our Stars Gala a Huge Success
Roslyn Heights, NY—North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center is proud to announce that our Annual Gala, Dancing With Our Stars, raised $420,000 to support the Guidance Center’s work to restore and strengthen the emotional health and well-being of children and families on Long Island.
“I’m so proud to play a role in supporting the amazing work of the Guidance Center,” said Sunny Hostin, CNN’s Legal Analyst and the honoree at the event, which was held at the Garden City Hotel and attended by 311 people. “Because of their dedicated staff and innovative programs, children and families in crisis are getting the help they need, regardless of their ability to pay. It’s no exaggeration to say the Guidance Center is saving lives.”
This year’s dancers wowed the crowd with their deft footwork, clearly the result of many hours of training. Our Dancing Stars were six of Long Island’s finest business leaders and Guidance Center supporters: Frank Castagna, Castagna Realty; Charles Chan, Harvest International; Wayne Grossé, Bethpage Federal Credit Union; Jo-Ellen Hazan, Past President, the Guidance Center; Tracey Kupferberg, Daniel Gale Sotheby’s International Realty; and Sandra Schoenbart, Sandra K., Inc. Sales/Marketing.
The Guidance Center’s newest board member, Charles Chan, delighted the audience with his lively performance to the classic “Singin’ In the Rain. “I want to thank all the participating dancers for the grueling hard work and enduring sacrifice of their leisure time to put together a show we all would be proud of for a great cause—an experience and unforgettable moments that will last a lifetime!” he said.
The Guidance Center would also like to thank our Emcee, Sports Announcer/Author Len Berman, and Live Auctioneer Bernadette Castro. The evening’s co-chairs were Chris and Jack Bransfield and Andrea and Michael Leeds.
“Our annual benefit for children’s mental health was a terrific night,” said Andrew Malekoff, Guidance Center Executive Director/CEO. “The evening was filled with good spirits, great fun and strong support for our mission to serve those in need of care for mental health and substance abuse challenges.”
Captions: All our Dancing Stars: (second from left): Frank Castagna, Jo-Ellen Hazen, Charles Chan, Tracey Kupferberg and her dance partner, Sandra Schoenbart, Wayne Grossé and his dancing partner.
Frank Castagna and Guidance Center board member Jo-Ellen Hazen
Regina Barros-Rivera, co-chairs Michael and Andrea Leeds, honoree Sunny Hostin, Len Berman, Bernadette Castro, co-chairs Chris and Jack Bransfield, and Andrew Malekoff
About Us:
As the pre-eminent not-for-profit children’s mental health agency on Long Island, North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center is dedicated to restoring and strengthening the emotional well-being of children (from birth – age 24) and their families. Our highly trained staff of psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, vocational rehabilitation counselors and other mental health professionals lead the way in diagnosis, treatment, prevention, training, parent education, research and advocacy. The Guidance Center helps children and families address issues such as depression and anxiety; developmental delays; bullying; teen pregnancy; sexual abuse; teen drug and alcohol abuse; and family crises stemming from illness, death, trauma and divorce. For more than 60 years, the Guidance Center has been a place of hope and healing, providing innovative and compassionate treatment to all who enter our doors, regardless of their ability to pay. For more information about the Guidance Center, visit www.northshorechildguidance.org or call (516) 626-1971, ext. 320.
Regina Barros-Rivera, co-chairs Michael and Andrea Leeds, honoree Sunny Hostin, Len Berman, Bernadette Castro, co-chairs Chris and Jack Bransfield, and Andrew Malekoff