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Clallam County

Respite Center

Opens

The seed was planted as far back as 1985: Clallam County needs a Men-tal Health Crisis Stabilization Pro-gram. Decades later, that ambition has been realized with an impres-sive collaborative effort among Pen-insula Behavioral Health, Clallam County, Olympic Medical Center and the Washington State Division of Behavioral Health and Recovery. Opening a crisis stabilization pro-gram in Port Angeles could not have come at a better time because of a shortage of psychiatric hospital beds in WA, an inability to tempo-rarily board residents in local hospi-tal emergency rooms until a psychi-atric bed can be found, and commu-nity concerns about suicide. Penin-sula Behavioral Health can now offer a more intense level of inter-vention before a resident’s crisis reaches the point of requiring psy-chiatric hospitalization. Not only have our residents had to be hospitalized as far away as Bel-lingham and Longview, but over 36% have had to be held for days at a time at OMC because available psychiatric beds could not be found. Providing local crisis care will reduce the cost of expensive inpatient treatment for many residents, alle-viate pressure on families, the Olympic Medical Center Emergency Room, the Port Angeles and Sequim Police Departments, the Clallam County Jail and perhaps even save lives. Additionally, the less money

Peninsula Behavioral Health spends on costly hospitalizations, the more funding will be available to provide treatment services to residents in the community. When a communi-ty mental health center is unable to adequately meet the mental health needs of residents in the communi-ty due to funding challenges, the more crises and hospitalizations a community will contend with. The Respite Center will assist resi-dents experiencing an acute psychi-atric crisis. Located in the former St. Vincent de Paul Thrift Store build-

ing, the 6-bed program will provide voluntary, short-term stabilization services on a 24/7 basis to residents in an unlocked, neighborhood-based setting. Services will include a Mental Health evaluation, a Health Care screening, medication supervision, access to a broad array of clinical interventions, assistance with housing and social service needs, and linkage with other com-munity providers.

Pictured from left to right: Yvonne Ziomkowski, Dave Neupert, Peter Casey,

Wendy Sisk, William Dole, Jim McEntire, Dr. Joshua Jones, Brittney Jensen,

Eric Lewis, and Martha Moyer.

Executive Director

~Peter O. Casey

Jim McEntire Officiates at the Ribbon Cutting

Ceremony on December 4th.

Thank you to our 2014 Donors! Page 2

$2000 + Jim and Joanne Hallett Grant Munro

$1000 - $1999 William and Jill Dole Dungeness Valley Lutheran Church Dean and Katherine Kruse McMenamin & McMenamin George and Martha Moyer Dean and Deb Reed Alda Siebrands and Kris Slack Gene and Norma Turner

$500 - $999 Mary Bower James and Barbara Cammack Randy and Carol Johnson Richard Manning Roger and Maura Oakes Dan Pottiger Chris and Shelly Riffle Ryan and Katie Rudd Norm and Helen Schaaf Bill Siddons Steve Tharinger Don and Geri Zanon

$250 - $499 M. Bishop Bastien Stephen and Winnie Bush William Chisham & PK Snowhook Meg Depew Bill and Marny Hannan Rod and Georgia Lee Eric and Alwynn Lewis Mary Price John and Gail Ralston Curtis and Mary Sharpe Betsi Thompson Bobbie Usselman

$101 - $249 Greg Batton Rich and Marjorie Cariello Chris and Dana Donohue Robert G. Doster Larry and Cyndi Hueth Lori McLaughlin Cheryl Miller Rebekah Miller Jerry and Kayla Oakes Marsha Omdal Les Samples Amy Scott Paul and Jeanette Stehr-Green Richard & Yvonne Ziomkowski

The staff and board of directors of PBH would like to thank not only our donors, but also everyone who attended the annual dinner. You have all helped us to provide quality comprehensive behavioral

health services to our fellow residents.

It is not too late to make your 2014 contribution to us, which may be tax deductible. If you are interested in learning more about our

organization, or if you would like to consider us as a beneficiary in your estate plan, we would love to hear from you!

$50 - $100 Zoe Apisdorf William and Diana Baum John and Amanda Beitzel Evelyn Boles Andy and Colleen Brastad David and Kathy Brown Greg Butler Peter Casey and Jill Paulk Barbara Clampett Paul Cunningham Mary Deckebach Dennis Dickson Ellen Fetchiet Brenda Gilchrist Jen Gouge Clover Gowing Thor and Andria Gunderson Mark and Patty Hannah Jean Hordyk John and Patricia Lebowitz John and Holly Locke Betty Marshall Jim McLaughlin Peter Mehl and Bonnie Bulach John and Marti Melcher Dawn Norbisrath Roger and Edna Pike Bob and Kathi Pressley Mary Preston Rebecca Redshaw Betsy Reed-Schultz Janice Reid Jennifer Richards Juan and Joyce Ruiz Tomasine Schwent Lisa Shindler Gary and Nina Smith Chris and Laurie Szczepczynski Michelle Turner Kevin and Jen Van de Wege Carol Walters John and Mary Wegmann Bill and Debbie Weinheimer Darryl Wolfe

Businesses Partners that supported

the fund raiser dinner with donations

Voya $250 Sherwood Assisted Living $200 Domino’s Pizza $150 Irwin Dental Center $150 Drake’s $100 Jim’s Pharmacy $100 Olympic Iyengar Yoga $100 Pacific Office Equipment $100 Panacea Spa $100

Meet the Team of Children and Family Services

Our Clients, Our Neighbors

Page 3

Back row: Lisa Shindler, LMHCA; Kathy Stevens, Supervisor, LMHC; Kristen Warner, LMHC, Dylan Eekhoff, CPC

Front Row: Marcus Farley, MA; Amanda Coleman, BS; Heather Quarti, LMHC; Lindsay Hood, LMHC

Not pictured: Lucille Celestino, LMFT; Tim Haberer, LICSW; Amalia Baker, BA

Of the 3,900+

clients that

PBH served

this year,

700+ are

children

T he stories that I hear are gritty, solemn, and

intense, but they are more than anecdotes: they

are reality for our very own neighbors.

It has taken me some years to wrap my mind

around the real work we do at Peninsula Behav-

ioral Health. Learning how the agency operated

came easily; dealing with the ache in my heart

once I started hearing the accounts of the people

we serve, that was nowhere near as easy.

Mental Illness remains stigmatized. We would

never blame a child for being stricken with can-

cer, but what do we think of the child who’s act-

ing out in school? Do we know that she is in fos-

ter care and has been moved from one home to

another and placed in 2 different schools in the

past 12 months? Another child comes to school

hungry, and his parents are engaged in a spiteful

divorce battle. When I heard that one of our

clients had been locked in a basement and occa-

sionally thrown food, I couldn’t grasp the mad-

ness. These are the children that our clinicians

are treating. These kids are attending school

with our children or grandchildren; they’re our

neighbors; maybe we sit next to them in the

same pew; or maybe we don’t see them, yet they

all live among us.

The Development Department office is situated

in the same hallway as our Crisis Services de-

partment, and I occasionally hear incoming calls

when I’m in their office ‘bullpen’. Last week a

woman phoned saying that she was going to

commit suicide, and I heard the gentle voice of

our Designated Mental Health Professional ask-

ing her if she could make it to the Emergency

Room on her own or if she needed an ambu-

lance. The DMHP met her at the hospital less

than an hour later. It was – unfortunately - not

an atypical day for us.

It is a privilege to raise money for PBH, the larg-

est nonprofit agency in Clallam County. I am not

a therapist and cannot guide someone through

treatment, but I can contribute in my own way

by helping to make our services possible to

those who are in desperate need. Please join me

this year, if you can.

~Rebekah Miller, Development Coordinator

BOARD PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE Page 4

T he Board of Directors thanks retiring

members, Carol Barnes, Laura O’Neal and

Edna Petersen, for their notable service. We

welcome new members Barbara Clampett,

Jen Gouge, Richard Manning and Brandel

Sundt and look forward to their participa-

tion. Every board member has the satisfac-

tion of knowing that they are responsible for

the wellbeing of a vital community asset,

Peninsula Behavioral Health.

It has been a momentous year with expand-

ing services and programs, but we continue

treating more clients with fewer resources.

Therefore, we turn to you to ask for help in

meeting our community’s needs. Anyone

who needs care should be able to access it.

Please consider a donation to PBH this year

or in your estate planning.

Last year, our dinner would not have been

the success it was without the generous

support of our sponsors. We’d like to say a

very warm ‘Thank You!’ to each of them.

If you are interested in sponsoring the 2015 Annual Dinner, Peninsula Behavioral Health would

welcome you aboard! The relationships we have with community members and businesses are

the lifeblood of our work, and we value helping you achieve your philanthropic aspirations.

First Federal $5000 Port Angeles Hardwood $2500 Moss Adams $1500 Callis & Associates $1250 Green Crow $1250 Merrill & Ring $1250 Hoch Construction $ 500

We also want to express our gratitude to

Carol Barnes, Jim’s Pharmacy, Dr.

Joshua Jones, and William Payne for

purchasing dinner tickets for 10 guests.

2014-2015 Board Members

William Dole, President

Roger Oakes MD, VP

Yvonne Ziomkowsky, Sec’y /Treas.

Barbara Clampett

Jen Gouge

John Krause

Richard Manning

Martha Moyer

Dave Neupert

Leanna Ray-Colby

Deb Reed

Alda Siebrands

Erik Smith

Brandel Sundt

Thank you,

William R. Dole

“ Anyone

who needs

care should

be able to

access it. “

Page 5

2015 Upcoming Events

2014 HIGHLIGHTS

Comic Elayne Boosler regaled our

guests with her sidesplitting humor.

Nearly $30,000 was raised, which went

toward construction of the essential

Clallam County Respite Center.

Sarah Perry and her 2 daughters with Board Member

Alda Siebrands and Kris Slack

Betsi Schultz, Board Member Yvonne Ziomkowski and

Richard Ziomkowski at the Annual Fund Raiser.

The PBH Art Exhibition

displayed clients’ and staff works

to the public at Heatherton

Gallery.

February: Youth Mental Health First Aid Training

March: KONP Home & Lifestyle Show. Get your picture taken at our PHOTO BOOTH!

May 1: Annual Fund Raiser Dinner. Dan Brown, author of The Boys in the Boat, is

our guest speaker. Tickets are $75, and you’re invited!

October: returns to benefit the Port Angeles and Sequim Food Banks.

This year we are including the Humane Society! Reserve a spot for your team!

For more information about any event, please contact Rebekah Miller 457-0431 x159

Arlene Engel Home Renovation

Thanks to the generosity of The Clallam County Physicians’ Benefit Fund, The

Walkling Foundation, and Kitsap Bank, PBH was granted funding to remodel the kitchen

at Arlene Engel Home, our 19-bed residential home for the most severely mentally ill clients.

Fairchild Floors did a magnificent job on the new floors and counters!

Staffers Sherri Rodriguez and Caitlin Peterson

working in the new kitchen at AEH

Thanks for taking time to

read our newsletter!