Westminster Optimist Club Funds Fieldtrip for Community Reach Center Day Treatment School

(Northglenn - October 27, 2006) Ray Bilby, President of Westminster Optimist Club, and club member Bruce Vezina, presented a check for $400 to Community Reach Center Day Treatment School to fund a fieldtrip to the Downtown Aquarium/Colorado's Ocean Journey. Approximately 40 students will experience this exciting venue for the first time in November.

The Center's Day Treatment School reconvened August 15th along with the rest of Adams County School Districts. Located at 11285 Highline Drive in Northglenn, the classrooms look like any other classroom, with neat rows of desks and chairs, globes, chalk boards and computers.Students at Community Reach Center's Day Treatment School are living with a mental illness, and periodically require a more supportive, intensive educational environment.Students are referred to the program by their public school.

The goal of the Day Treatment School is to provide individualized educational services in coordination with the students' local school districts, to avoid more restrictive placements, and ultimately successfully re-integrate them back into their neighborhood public schools. In addition to maintaining a high-quality learning environment, a multi-disciplinary team provides individual and group therapy, case management services and family therapy focused on psycho-education, parenting skills, behavior management and peer-support.The average length of stay for a student at the Day Treatment School is nine months.

Community Reach Center has been the premier mental health provider for Adams County and surrounding areas for nearly 50 years, with outpatient offices located in Brighton, Commerce City, Northglenn, Thornton and Westminster. For more information about Community Reach Center, go to www.CommunityReachCenter.org. The Westminster Optimist Club has been a "Friend of Youth" in Westminster since 1988. The Club meets 7AM every Tuesday at Ciancio's at Hyland Hills Restaurant 9650 Sheridan Blvd. Call Warren Fair 303-465-5829 or Ann Heim 303-466-9808 for more information.