Zonta Service Dollars at Work in the Community

In the 2006-2007 fiscal year, Zonta Club of Yakima Valley awarded a Zonta local service grant of $3,900 to Central Washington Comprehensive Mental Health for the purchase of training materials for the Strong Families program.

Central Washington Comprehensive Mental Health serves as a leader in parent education by providing the Strong Families • Familias Fuertes Program throughout Yakima County. The goal of the program is to provide intensive and comprehensive parent training to families, with the goal of raising healthy and resilient youth, reducing family violence, preventing child abuse and neglect, and reducing the risk of drug and alcohol abuse. Through this program parents learn skills for raising healthy children, they develop positive discipline and communication skills, and are encouraged to make lifestyle changes within their family by breaking the cycle of ineffective, sometimes damaging parenting practices. These new skills, behaviors, and choices help to build a strong foundation for our future generations.

Here is one participant’s story:

Early this spring we had a small and very diverse group of parents in a class in Toppenish. A young Native American man was attending with his wife. During introductions he expressed his desire to keep traditional beliefs in his family and to raise his kids according to his culture. Through out the first few sessions he remained fairly quiet. As time went by he began asking questions but remained fairly reserved for the entire duration of the class series.

Graduation is time when participants can invite their extended family to come and celebrate the completion of the class. This young family arrived with grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins and several additional friends and family. During the evening of graduation parents are also invited to stand and speak to the group and facilitators about their experience. This young man stood up in front of the class and expressed his profound gratitude to every one for making the class such a positive experience for him. He said that at first he was afraid that he would have to change all of his ways of thinking. But in the end he found that he didn’t have to change anything, he was able to add to his parenting skills.

Learn more about the Work of Central Washington Comprehensive Mental Health at their website.

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