Family Care Services

FCS Receives Writeup in Gazette

Family Care Services receives a writeup by Gazette Editor, Colleen Marshall, profiling Family Care Services and it's director, Heidi Bathalon. Article text below:

A safe haven: Family Care Services keeps kids safe By Colleen Marshall Gazette Editor

You're safe. I'll watch over you. You can play.

Those three sentences are written in white letters in three neat sentences on the back of the Family Care Services of York County keychain, in the shape of a red heart. It's what every child receives when they come to the Springvale non-profit organization, attached to a large brown teddy bear. "That's what we give kids at orientation," said Family Care Services Director Heidi Bathalon. "We let them know that it is safe and comfortable and this is a place for kids to see their parents. It's not a place for parents to see each other. The main message we want them to know is that they are safe here."

Here is the Family Access Program, which is the only place within the state that works with the court systems to create a place for parents to meet with their children in a monitored setting, in a neutral location. Bathalon said the pilot program is part of a court initiative for parents to reestablish contact with their children, most of whom have been victims of child abuse, neglect or domestic violence, or subject to substance abuse by a parent. Bathalon runs the operation out of a spacious building adjacent to the Notre Dame Catholic Church, the former home of a convent, which allows for two large playrooms, as well as a kitchen setting.

The Springvale office has two large rooms filled with toys, games and books where children can interact with their parents. Panic buttons as well as telephones programmed to dial 911 are in place in case of emergency. There also is a large white hand-painted teepee that is only for children, in case they feel overwhelmed and need to retreat to a calming location. "Kids feel like it's their space," she said. "Only kids are allowed in the teepee."

Bathalon said children are assured parents cannot bad-mouth one another, nor are they allowed to be violent, or use behavior that may have sent them to court in the first place.

The monitored visits typically occur one to two times a week and cost parents $20 to $30, depending on the services they receive. Bathalon stresses Family Care Services is neutral and does not make judgments on parents once they enter the program - although there is an interview process prior to parents being accepted into the program as they must follow the program's strict guidelines.

Bathalon said she also hopes to put an end to children witnessing "horrific scenes" between their parents when they meet to transfer the kids from one home to another. At Family Care Services, parents have a staggered entrance and exit so the parents do not come into contact with one another. Although the site previously only took court-appointed families, the program now is open to any family who wants to eliminate possible conflicts between parents. The cost is $5, with the parent picking up the child responsible for footing the bill.

This service now is offered at the organization's new site in Biddeford, at the Martin Community Center on Alfred Street.

Monthly they see 80 families, from throughout York County, and as far away as Cornith. Family Care Services currently has one paid staff member, as well as interns and volunteers who help to oversee its programs. Bathalon has not been paid for the past year, to help keep the program running. The organization recently applied for a $400,000 three-year grant, which is renewable. She hopes to hear whether they have secured the funding by August, which would allow for them to expand programming throughout the state, as well as offer more programs locally.

Bathalon said she previously ran a day care operation out of her Springvale home, but began serving as a child advocate in 1991. Her frustrations with what she thought was "inadequate" reunification between parents and their children - where monitored visits often occurred in windowless state department offices or conference rooms in Portland, far from the family's home - led her to work with the state Department of Human Services (DHS). "As tough as it is, the rewards are there. I get a lot out of it. I feel like this is what I was meant to do. I'm not looking for an easy job in life," she said.

In 1998, Bathalon said DHS officials officially asked her to work with them on a full-time basis as more daytime visits were needed. Previously she had monitored families at night and on the weekends, which were more convenient times for working families. Bathalon said she first ran the Family Care Services program from her home, which allowed for parents to be monitored in a more realistic setting, where there was a kitchen, living room and place to play - and four years ago relocated to the organization's current location.

"For me, it's a good fit," she said. "Child advocacy is what I am, it's what I do."

For more information, please visit www.familycareservices-me.org.