Families Reconnect Over Family Treatment Weekend

Family weekend pic

   Over the weekend of September 25 – 27, Highfields organized its final Family Treatment Weekend of the year at the Onondaga Campus. 

   This weekend, four families were able to participate! Parents, siblings, and loved ones journeyed to Highfields’ campus to attend the Family Treatment Weekend.

   The activities began Friday night and lasted until Sunday morning. On Friday, the residential staff organized a trip to the local bowling alley with pizza and pop for the families. Everyone had a great time bowling and playing arcade games, and a few families stayed on campus overnight.

   Saturday was a busy day filled with events from start to finish! The families enjoyed breakfast together, and then went to the gym for activities.  Highfields’ newly furbished gymnasium was set up for the kids to enjoy games and activities such as ping pong, basketball, football, cards, and board games..

   During this time, the parents were invited to attend a workshop centered around the “Setting Limits” curriculum, to learn tips on anger management and communication skills.  Three of Highfields’ staff members led the workshop. They were impressed by the active participation and conversation from the parents.

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   Mr. Jurasek, a Highfields’ Family Counselor, helped teach the workshop, and said it’s always one of the highlights of the weekend.

   “It’s great to get parents engaged and talking about parenting skills,” he said. “We like to be a resource for them and to share some of our strategies so we can assist them with parenting their child.”

   After the workshop was finished, the families enjoyed lunch along with the staff.

   During the afternoon, the families watched a movie together, and then enjoyed the beautiful day with rides on our zip line! The majority of families took part in this and rode the zip line multiple times.

   For dinner, the staff set up tailgate games and grilled. Everyone enjoyed dinner and afterwards they were ready to return to their cabins for much needed rest and relaxation.

   On Sunday morning the families shared breakfast together, and then left to return to their homes.  Although it was difficult to say good-bye, everyone was appreciative of the time they had together.

   “We can’t wait to do it again next year,” said Mr. Jurasek. “The kids and families look forward to it, and we do to.”

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