Tag Archive: support

Jul 30

IM Moment Video: Perseverance and finding joy while working with challenging children

  In this post, I thought it would be good to share a pair of clips from conversations I had with Steff Turner and ML Rutherford, two key leaders at Intermountain in Community-based Services and Residential Services. Together, they represent decades of experience in working alongside parents, foster parents, grandparents, educators, therapists, and other caregivers to …

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May 21

Renewed faith and greater connection: a testimony to God’s grace in Michael’s life

We recently received this wonderful testimony from Andrea, Michael’s mother, after a home visit her son took as he nears the end of his time in residential treatment: “Prior to his stay at Intermountain Residential, our son Michael was struggling so greatly that he had stopped attending religious education sessions and was not able to …

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May 08

Intermountain Moment: 17-year old Kevin

“Kevin” recently returned to public school after serving a sentence in residential treatment for sexually abusing another child. The director of Intermountain’s school-based-services says that everyone was afraid of Kevin: the schools, his probation officer, his therapist. Even experienced staffers at Intermountain were afraid of Kevin. However, Kevin was what people call a “paper monster.” …

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Mar 08

Intermountain Moment: Elaina’s story

At age four, “Elaina” remembers wandering the streets of her hometown on her own. Her parents were using drugs and severely neglecting her. She has just a few fuzzy memories of that time: “I know that the refrigerator was green,” she says, “but it didn’t matter, because there was never anything in it.” To make …

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Dec 07

From our children: a Christmas & holiday thank you card to our supporters!

As Intermountain’s chaplain, I have the opportunity to travel all across Montana (and sometimes across the country!) to share all that Intermountain is accomplishing in the lives of children and families we serve through your generous support. It’s an honor to be able to thank many of you in person as I visit your congregations …

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Oct 18

Intermountain Moment: Helping the trauma-affected child succeed at play, with Kathleen Slack, M.S.

Play time can be hard for any child, but is especially difficult for trauma-affected children. Children that have been affected by early childhood trauma and severe stress are often given any number of labels to describe the symptoms of that trauma or adverse childhood experience: PTSD, ODD (Oppositional Defiant Disorder), ADD/ADHD (Attention Deficit Disorder or Attention …

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Oct 15

FREE Advent Object Lessons for 2018 (Year C)!

Once again, I would like to make available to you and your church free Advent children’s object lessons! While written primarily for a Children’s Sermon format, these object lessons could be used in a Sunday school setting, youth group, or even as sermon illustrations! None of the lessons are dependent on Change for Children (CFC) …

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Aug 17

Preparing for the School Year by Marvin Williams, MA, Intermountain Director of Education

NOTE: This is reposted from Intermountain’s main website and professional blog. For more resources and helpful articles visit HERE. When a child begins a transition back to school from a long summer break most parents can find this to be a difficult time. But for parents of a child with a disability the experience brings even …

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May 17

FREE RESOURCE for youth ministers… preparing to discuss 13 Reasons Why, season 2 (Netflix)

NOTE: This is a guest post from Tracie Dahl, LCPC, Middle School Therapist with Intermountain School-based Services (Helena, MT). It has been edited for use in a church setting by Chaplain Chris Haughee.   13 Reasons Why is about to drop its second season on May 18th. Since Season 2 is no longer adapting Jay Asher’s 2007 YA novel and …

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Nov 21

Happy Thanksgiving and Thank you!

We have spent a lot of time this month focusing on thankfulness, gratitude, and recognizing how richly we have been blessed. It started with Operation Christmas Child, and a special chapel service in which each cottage sent a child up (one at a time) to select items for a gift they prepared together for a …

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