Dear Friends:

I hope your holiday season was off to a wonderful start with Thanksgiving and time well spent with those you love. 

Over the long weekend, my family and I chose a movie to watch called Indian Horse, about a Canadian First Nations boy who survived the residential school system and became a star ice hockey player. It was a good film, but hard to witness the protagonist’s experiences in the school and then later in his life. It seemed apropos for us to think of given the textbook history of Thanksgiving, an acknowledgement that Thanksgiving isn’t warm and wonderful for everyone, that there are histories of pain and grief that need to be recognized as we celebrate our gratitude, luck, and resilience.

At CFS, we also recognize that holidays aren’t warm and wonderful for many, and that family doesn’t always connote love and connection. I hope that if that is true for you, you have found people that feel like the definition of family to you. 

National Adoption Day was November 22, and this year a dozen or so of our staff attended the finalization hearing of two darling little girls who had been waiting for this day for a long time. A new family formed with love and the good work of our team helping to facilitate the process. 

But just as adoption is a huge celebration for one family, there is another that is likely grieving the loss of its child or children. This is also an important acknowledgement for us to make. 

I’m grateful this season for everyone who works hard to make the world a better place for all our children, including our Pete’s Place and YouthWork teams. Some of their most recent stories are below.



Wishing you beautiful holidays with your family, whether blood or chosen.

Warmly,

Amanda Craggs’ parenting experience began in February 2020 when she got a call from Child and Family Services asking if she would be willing to take two sisters as her first foster care placement. The pandemic had just hit, but Amanda, like all of us, couldn’t have foreseen the challenges about to unfold around her. “I was placed with two little girls and two weeks later, everything shut down,” Amanda said.  

The children, just two weeks and 5 years old, arrived with trauma and little else. Both girls had experienced severe neglect and the older of the two had also been a victim of abuse. Amanda, a business owner and single parent, grew into her mothering role at an unpredictable societal time during the pandemic, but she navigated the dramatic changes. “I never thought of myself as a stay-at-home mom,” she said. But she found the way, and successfully helped the girls grow and thrive.

“I went about it by trying to look through the eyes of a child who has been through so much,” she said.  

Looking back on her experience, Amanda said she witnessed firsthand how a peaceful and loving environment can change a child. It also opened her eyes to how many area children suffer from its absence. “The need is in our own neighborhood,” she said. 

Amanda, like many foster parents, took steps to adopt the children placed in her care when it became clear that the girls’ biological parents would not be able to care for them. The sisters, now 2 1/2 and 8 years old, were officially adopted on Adoption Day— November 22, 2022. The courtroom was packed, not only with friends and family members, but with over 15 CFS staff members who came to celebrate the event and witness a happy ending that isn’t always guaranteed, but is always hoped for in this line of work. The ceremony did not disappoint. It was beautiful and heartfelt, and many had tears in their eyes as Amanda and her two little girls became an official “forever family.” 

Amanda Cragg with her daughters on Adoption Day! Pictured with Judge Jennifer Whitten and CFS staff.

In celebration of our 85^th year, we are highlighting a few of our veteran helpers. Many of these staff members have dedicated their careers to helping others in times of crisis, challenge, and life transition.

Adoption Supervisor Lisa Wisniewski has worked at Child and Family Services for 25 years. Although it’s unusual in the child welfare field, Lisa has remained in the same department for her career at CFS. She credits this to the staff she works with—the commitment and dedication to the individual kids they serve, as well as their commitment to the larger mission of serving children and families. “There’s something about adoption,” Lisa says, “the feeling you get when a child gets a sense of permanency, often after being in the system for years. Being able to give them the permanency they deserve is really a cool, special thing.”  

"There’s a tremendous need for families to not just adopt but to foster,” Lisa says, "particularly to foster older children, teens especially, and sibling groups.” In general, the typical person on the street does not understand or realize the number of children that need homes, both foster and adoptive. “And I guess the other thing,” she continued, “is that there’s this element to adoption that people often forget to think about, which is that there’s also loss for people. Generally, it's a very heavy thing-- but for birth parents who are losing their child, it's a tremendous loss, and we need to be mindful and recognize that.” It’s true that for many of us, adoption conjures up positive thoughts, but Lisa wants us to remember that for others, it may bring up a memory of loss in their life.

“There’s a loss for the adoptee as well, because they lose their biological history. Many have no contact with their biological family or access to health records, and that’s huge.” 

Lisa also wants us to recognize the wonderful people who do decide to move forward with adopting from foster care. Their dedication and commitment, especially the time it takes to navigate the system, often while parenting a child who has high needs, is truly remarkable. Lisa says, “Having families who say, ‘I’m gonna hang in there and I’m gonna be there for that kid’-- that’s monumental for them to say, and monumental for that child for sure.” 

“The staff—my coworkers and colleagues—are so dedicated to the mission,” she said. “It’s really unique

because we have a lot of long-time staff. And obviously we’re not here making a lot of money! We all believe in our mission to help children and families and serve the most vulnerable members of our community. And when you see your colleagues with that level of commitment, it inspires you to want to be the same and do the same. To me, that’s really the main thing. It might be a lot easier on a lot of levels to say, ‘You know what, I'm gonna work somewhere else for more money with less stress and heartache,’ and that would be understandable. But

you don’t see that with our employees. You see people who really care, and are providing quality, excellent work. That’s pretty awe-inspiring.” 

Take 10 minutes to watch a great teen adoption story featuring our own Jenn Thomas! Click to watch

November was established as National Homelessness Awareness Month to raise awareness about issues relating to housing insecurity and homelessness, and to get communities invested in supporting those in need. CFS supports youth who are experiencing homelessness through our Pete’s Place shelter. 

1 in 30 youth aged 12-17 will experience homelessness in a year. A lot of social and emotional growth typically happens during that age range. This becomes severely impacted when youth are faced with housing instability. Youth experiencing homelessness are more likely to experience mental health and substance abuse issues, practice unsafe sex, be involved in criminal activity, and have more barriers to education and employment than their peers.

Pete’s Place is a safe place for homeless and runaway youth, ages 12-17, from Grand Traverse, Kalkaska, Antrim, Benzie, & Leelanau counties. Conflict at home with family members, being unable to get their needs met, couch surfing, and so many other circumstances may lead a youth to Pete’s Place. Staff help youth in crisis by meeting their basic needs with a warm bed, meals, clothing and hygiene supplies. Each youth also receives counseling services and is able to work on strengthening life skills.

Pete’s Place helps keep youth connected to their community supports by providing transportation to school, work, and appointments. Youth are able to receive the individualized support that they need to work towards goals that they would like to achieve. Staff members at Pete’s Place help support the youth in these goals using a trauma- informed and person-centered approach. Staff work with youth and their families, providing individual and family counseling in order to assist them in better understanding their mental health needs and assist with reunification when possible. While at Pete’s Place youth are able to take the space they need and work with staff to figure out what their next step is, which can range from reuniting with family to moving out independently. CFS strives to ensure that every child aged 12-17 has a safe and welcoming place to stay in their time of need. When one youth was asked what he had learned during the program, he wrote that he was"…better able to identify feelings, learned new ways to make me feel better when I’m under stress.”

If you or someone you know are experiencing homelessness please reach out to local resources for assistance. 

Pete's Place Youth Shelter

231-922-4800 cfsnwmi.org/petesplace

Goodwill Inn

Shelter for families and individuals, offering case management and permanent housing assistance.

231-922-4890

goodwillnmi.org

Safe Harbor

Seasonal emergency shelter currently open M-F 6p-8a and all day on the weekends, offering meals, showers, laundry facilities and area resource guides.

1-844-900-0500 gtsafeharbor.org.resource-guide

A very special thanks to Pastor Daniel and Family of Faith Church for providing 30 Thanksgiving dinners to our families in need! Our clients were so thankful, and so are we for Family of Faith's partnership. The Church has provided holiday meals to our families since 2011!

We are proud to announce that our YouthWork AmeriCorps program has won the 2022 Governors Service Award in the National Service Impact category! YouthWork leaders traveled to Detroit on November 17 to be presented the award by Lt. Governor Garlin Gilchrist. “Michigan succeeds because of Michiganders who go above and beyond to serve their communities and lift up others,” said Governor Whitmer. “This year’s winners get things done even when nobody's looking because they know that every contribution makes a huge impact. I am honored to present the Governor’s Service Awards to this year’s recipients and urge every Michigander to get involved in their community so we can move our state forward together.” 

YouthWork has also been named a FINALIST for 2022 National Project of the Year (winners announced in early 2023) for our GoatWork project - conservation grazing with goats to remove invasives (and who doesn't want to hug a goat?)! And YouthWork AmeriCorps member Megan Smith is a FINALIST for National Corps Member of the Year. 

We are so proud of our staff and AmeriCorps members for these honors. Their hard work and determination make a difference in our communities every day. Congratulations!

Save on capital gains tax while supporting your favorite charity!

• Matching Gifts: Does your employer or service club (e.g. Traverse City Rotary Club) match your charitable donations? 
• Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD) from your IRA (if you’re over 70.5 years old) 
• Appreciated stocks, bonds, and mutual funds 
• Gifts of real estate and other valuable property 

Child and Family Services is proud to have achieved a Platinum Rating with Candid (formerly GuideStar), showing our commitment to transparency and accountability. Visit www.cfsnwmi.org to learn more and watch your mailbox for our latest Impact Report. 

Click to learn more and donate!

Subscribe and give this season! Child and Family Services will be benefitting from new, renewal, and gift subscriptions to Traverse, Northern Michigan's Magazine. From now through 12/31/22, CFS will receive $5 for every 12 month subscription purchase! Traverse Magazine is the gift that keeps on giving, subscribers receive monthly issues featuring stories, recipes, events, and more about life up north. Click link for more details and to subscribe, or give a gift. Click here to subscribe.

Child & Family Services of Northwestern Michigan

3785 Veterans Drive, Traverse City | (231) 946-8975

3434 M-119, Ste F, Harbor Springs | (231) 347-4463

Pete's Place | (231) 922-4800

  cfs@cfs3L.org   |  www.cfsnwmi.org