Director's Corner

Positive Changes
This quarter at DePaul Family Services has been a time of transition. We say goodbye to three faithful members of our Board of Directors. Andrea Haley has been on the Board since 1997. She has served in several positions on the Board, most recently on the Personnel Committee. Andrea works in the Roanoke City school system. Melina Perdue has also been a Board member since 1997. She has served as President of the Board as well as on several committees. She was instrumental in assisting the transition from Herb Beskar’s leadership to mine. Jay O’Brien has served on our Board since 1991. He also served as President during a critical time in the life of the organization. He helped facilitate the purchase of our present home, the Beskar Building on Hollins Road. Jay is President of Salem Stone Corporation. Together these three members of the Board gave 39 years of service to DePaul.

Another transition is occurring at the Board of Directors level. There is a Board and Staff Committee working on the development of a strategic plan for the organization. There will be new Board responsibilities and expectations. The Board has committed to a very high level of support of the mission of DePaul and the programs which we currently operate as well as to financially support the organization. There will be more information on new initiatives in the coming months. I am happy to announce that DePaul Family Services is the recipient of a grant from Ronald McDonald House Charities. This grant will be used for specific activities in our post-adoption services program. We are always searching for opportunities for grants to enhance services to our children, adults and families.

In May, we opened our newest service location in Halifax County. Initially we will provide Treatment Foster Care and Clinical Services in that location. Other programs may follow in the future. We look forward to a mutually productive relationship with our public partners in the Piedmont area of the state.

Foster Care month has come to a close but it is not too late to acknowledge the value of our greatest resource. We would not be able to provide the services we do without our foster parents and care providers. They are the backbone of our organization. As I am writing this article there are foster parents in the conference room having in-service training in order to enhance their skills. This level of commitment is our greatest strength. So, I say a big THANK YOU to all our foster parents and care providers.