The Family Program at Pine River took another leap forward in February by hosting the first Parent Workshop. It was an intensive two days that demonstrated the strong commitment that Pine River parents show for their children's growth as well as their own. We had parent representatives attend from every family whose child was in OLE and at the school (almost 50 parents in total)!
"What it brought home to me, in a very real sense, was the deep trust that our students and their families put in Pine River to provide them with the best possible care," said Vaughan Dowie, CEO of Pine River Institute. "I am deeply committed to maintaining that trust and continuing to build Pine River as a center of excellence."
The purpose of the workshop was threefold:
Community building through didactic and experiential activities
Parent coaching about the philosophy and clinical practices
Working to have parents, staff and students aligned in our approach
Each day offered a major presentation. The first morning covered The Maturity Model, and day two addressed Clinical Parenting (accurate recognition and limit-setting). Parents experienced a parallel process of what the students practice in process and stage groups and in a group experiential activity.
The students joined for dinner and provided a 'Talent Night', showing off developing skills with guitar, spoken word, songs and rap to a highly appreciative audience of parents and staff. The students vs. staff and parent hockey game on our frozen pond was a highlight for everyone!
Feedback from parents and students echoed our belief that this was an excellent and worthwhile event. Thanks to everyone who participated - we're looking forward to the next one.
Pine River Institute is a Residential Treatment Centre and Outdoor Leadership Experience for youth 13 to 19 struggling with mental health issues, and specifically addictive behaviors.