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Although headquartered in Dubuque, the staff also monitors clients in surrounding communities like Farley, Bellevue, Epworth and Dyersville. The program is staffed 24 hours each day, 7 days a week by trained in-home monitors.

Dedicated Staff
Robert McColley, In-Home Supervisor, doesn’t have to be persuaded to speak about his staff.

“They are such a highly focused and dedicated group of people,” he says. “They are never without their phones, and are always looking for the best results for both clients and their families.

“They really are dedicated to providing Help for Today and Hope for Tomorrow for these young people and their families, and are firmly committed to seeing that their clients become well-adjusted adults.”

Clients are placed into the program by order of either Juvenile Court Services or the Iowa Department of Human Services (DHS) because of a wide range of behaviors, including drug abuse, truancy, theft, or lack of respect for authority. The Hillcrest staff is often called upon to attend court hearings and any school meetings pertaining to the youths’ behavior.

McColley considers the program to be extremely beneficial to clients and their families.

“This is a flexible program which allows youngsters to remain in their own home and continue with their school or job,” he says. “And, as long as there isn’t a ‘no contact’ order, they can still spend time with their friends. Placing them in our program ensures that they will be securely monitored while they do this; and, with so many families in which both parents work today, this program ensures that the young person has some important direction and supervision in his or her daily life.”

In addition to monitoring the activities of the clients, the staff works with the parents in helping them acquire parenting skills which they may be lacking.

Constant contact
The six staff members, working in teams of two, are in almost constant contact with their clients. Each two-member team may be handling between 10 and 13 cases at any given time. There is a minimum of one face-to-face meeting each day, and the youth are required to contact the monitor via phone every two hours from the time they rise in the morning until their bedtime. This means that many staff begin their days with a telephone call from a client as early as six in the morning. Depending upon their curfew time, their last call may come as late as 10 or 11 p.m. The staff checks with school authorities about their attendance each day, and makes unannounced visits to their schools, homes and job sites to verify that they are indeed where they report they are. The regular staff is bolstered by an additional two ‘on call’ staff members.

When a client fails to contact a monitor on the two-hour schedule, they are placed on an ever-increasing check-in schedule, which may gradually increase to as much as one contact every 15 minutes. With DHS or court approval, the client may also be placed under ‘house arrest.’ If, after all of this, the youth still fails to cooperate, they will most likely be ordered by the court or their case worker to enter the Hillcrest shelter or a similar, more restricted, facility.

Joel brings a wide range of experience to his position. He was most recently on the faculties of Clarke College and Northeast Iowa Community College. He spent about six years as a vocational rehabilitation specialist and counselor for the Department of Veterans Affairs and time as a therapist with Substance Abuse Services Center and Turning Point Treatment Center at Mercy Medical Center in Dubuque.

A Licensed Mental Health Counselor by the State of Iowa, Joel offers counseling to individuals, families and couples.

“Since I’ve been with Hillcrest, the majority of my time has been spent in counseling couples,” says Joel. Although money and communication play an important part in why couples may seek assistance, Joel notes that “most often it involves different levels of appreciation of the partner’s role in the relationship, which precipitates a crisis over a period of time.”

Joel holds an MA degree from Loras College. He and his wife, Linda, have three children.

To ensure that outpatient counseling is available to everyone regardless of income, Hillcrest offers it on a sliding fee scale, with Title 19 clients also accepted.

Since the announcement of this initiative, I have been reading as much as possible to determine what impact this will have on Hillcrest Family Services. So far, I am unclear about the impact, but it has put a spotlight on the work of faith- based organizations like Hillcrest.

Hillcrest Family Services was started as the result of Dr. Nancy Hill’s Christian commitment to serve the less fortunate. She relied heavily on church leaders in Dubuque to start the Women’s Rescue Society and the Industrial Training School for Girls. Hillcrest formally became affiliated with the Upper Iowa Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, now known as the United Methodist Church, in 1914. In 1968, a covenant agreement was also signed with the Presbyterian Church (USA).

Through the years, this affiliation has meant that we have worked in close partnership with the church, but it has not been an exclusive partnership. Hillcrest has benefited with support from many different congregations and faiths. Minutes from the Hillcrest Board of Trustees in 1920 reflect a Christmas donation from the Catholic Knights of Columbus in Dubuque. Today, the interdenominational support continues — not only in donations of money, but also of time. Members of Temple Beth El voluneer on Christmas Eve at our Reflections in the Park event in Dubuque.

Although Hillcrest is an affiliated organization of both the United Methodist and Presbyterian Church, it remains an independent organization with a separate Board of Trustees providing governance of the organization. As I have spent more and more time with the leadership, congregations, and individual members of both churches, I have grown in my appreciation of their heritage of Christian service. I am proud of our participation in their ministry and the acceptance Hillcrest has among all faiths.

As a faith-based organization, we have been providing health and human services to the citizens of this country without discrimination or preference based upon their religious affiliation since 1896. I do not see this changing as a result of President Bush’s initiative. This spring, the State of Iowa Legislature and Congress have both passed legislation that has not been favorable to either faith-based or non-faith-based social services.

The Honorable Jane Mylrea, Associate Juvenile Court Judge for the First Judicial District of Iowa was the keynote speaker for the event.

Julie Johnson, a community volunteer from Dubuque, was elected to her second term as president of the board. Other officers elected:

New members named to the board include:

Fifty-one staff (our largest group ever) were recognized for their years of service to Hillcrest.

Highland Place operates as a Residential Care Facility/Residential Care Facility for Persons with Mental Illness. The initial agreement runs for a term of 24 months.

In announcing the agreement, Gary Gansemer, Executive Director of Hillcrest, said, “This agreement establishes a unique partnership with the five counties involved in Heartland and their Central Point Coordinators for mental health services.

“We’re excited about expanding our services into this area. It provides new opportunities for Hillcrest Family Services, and reflects both our strategic plan and our agency’s mission.”

$1,500 grant from Very Special Arts Dubuque for arts education in the Hillcrest school.

$14,076 grant from Dubuque Racing Association to provide floor coverings and appliances for our Marywood adult group home and for our Family Empowerment program.

In order to best address these needs, Hillcrest is undertaking a feasibility study in the next few months in preparation for a major fundraising program to begin in 2002. Hillcrest has enlisted the assistance of fundraising consultants Braren, Mulder, German Associates, Inc., of Davenport, IA, to help us in this very important stage.

Over the spring and summer, nearly 20 presentations about Hillcrest’s needs for the future will be held in Dubuque, Cedar Rapids, Iowa City, Clinton and other Iowa cities to gauge interest and support for Hillcrest’s mission.

A campaign to raise $2 million in capital needs, $1 million in cash for endowment needs, and another $4 million in deferred gifts for the endowment will be studied. Gifts will be made over a three-to-five year period.

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I
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II
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III
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To be assured their gifts will be used for the purposes for which they were given.

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VI
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IX
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