Glade Run Lutheran Services

BULLETIN OF REPORTS
REPORT OF GLADE RUN LUTHERAN SERVICES

As I write what will be my last of 29 reports for Glade Run Lutheran Services, many emotions rush over me. So much has changed for Glade Run Lutheran Services over the years – the physical look of our historic Zelienople campus, our expanded continuum of services, and the increasingly challenging needs of those we serve, to mention a few. What hasn’t changed is our commitment to mission and quality, and the innovative spirit of our staff that has helped Glade Run exist longer than any other Lutheran social ministry organization in the United States.

When I began my service at Glade Run in September of 1989, the prevalence of autism in America was roughly 1 in 1,000. Today, one in 43 youth are diagnoses with autism. In that time, Glade Run has become a regional leader of autism services for children and adolescents, and while they may not all be launched during my tenure, additional services for adults with autism at Glade Run are imminent. We are proud of the continuum we have developed to serve our autism community, including quality schools, transitional program offerings, our exciting Sensory Park and Playground, camps, and other unique therapeutic activities. As I write, the Jeremiah Village project is awaiting tax credit funding, and renovations are underway for The Glades, a two-year residential program designed to permanently launch young adults with autism into independence. It is truly an exciting time to be part of Glade Run, and I will continue to watch the agency grow from my retirement.

While Glade Run’s autism offerings have been developed and expanded in the last 28 years, mental health offerings have changed significantly. While once known for residential care, Glade Run – like most other agencies – has been pressured to close costly residential offerings and work with children, adults and families within their own communities. Today, you will find Glade Run staff in classrooms, public school offices, community centers, offices and homes, providing a level of care that encompasses all ages.

Educational offerings have also grown. Shortly after I joined Glade Run, we opened St. Stephen’s Lutheran Academy on our Zelienople campus. Today that school includes four buildings on our Zelienople campus and two additional school buildings in Sharon and Utica. Contracts with public schools exceed 70 districts throughout Western Pennsylvania, and this June 20 youth will earn their graduation diplomas.

In 2016-17, Glade Run served a record number of individuals through the following program offerings:

• Behavioral Health Rehabilitation Services served 315 individuals
• Blended Case Management served 421 individuals
• Family Based Services served 136 individuals
• Glade Run Adventures served 600 individuals
• Mental Health Partnership served 747 individuals
• Outpatient Services served 1747 individuals
• Pittsburgh Public Schools Therapeutic Classrooms served 148 students
• Residential Treatment Facility (closed December 2016) served 90 individuals
• St. Stephen’s Lutheran Academies served 383 students
• Transition Program served 14 youth

Evidenced by our tradition of innovation while evolving to meet the changing (and increasingly challenging) needs of those in our communities, Glade Run’s strategic visioning process helps determine the best use of our expertise and physical assets. Through that process, several key objectives emerged. While Glade Run will continue to grow our current quality offerings, additional key objectives being developed for offering in the near future include:

• Family Home Partnership, our new private pay program designed to help families with autism.
• We are in the process of writing the program description for Intensive Family Support Teams that would include Family Based Services as the portal for entering the program with brief residential stays to stabilize families.
• The Glades is the name we’ve given to the new two year residential apartment living for adults on the autism spectrum. Renovations have already begun on Bassler cottage, curriculum has been purchased, and a partnership with Butler County Community College has been forged.
• The Bridge Project, coordinating with congregations and community partners to join with families and individuals to provide for basic needs and improve the quality of their lives.
• We will explore a private pay outpatient model called Private Outpatient Services, which may be a LLC under Glade Run Lutheran Services.
• RCAP grants and state tax credits for Jeremiah Village have been applied for.
• We have had many requests for expansion in our school based mental health services and will continue to pursue growth and development in that program.

These new and expanded program offerings will not only fill service gaps in our community, they will also allow us to continue our mission to link faith and service in ways that utilize the talents of our staff. As we increase our private pay services, we also strengthen the organization by reducing our reliance on unstable and uncertain government funding.

We are blessed to have experienced another year of support and service to our mission. This year, as we evolve into God’s plan for our future, we especially value the gifts of time, talent and treasure offered by our Lutheran churches, brothers, and sisters.

Being the CEO of Glade Run has been a job, a career path, and a calling. I’ve made several moves during my ministry and I’ve always pondered each time whether I was making the right choice. I came to realize that the place I chose was not as important as sharing the hope given to me through the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Reading about the history of Glade Run made it very clear that life has never been easy for those who lived and worked here. But the calling to serve has been preserved for the past 168 years; an amazing reality. The Rev. William Passavant wrote in the mid-1800s “In the midst of scarcity and embarrassment, the Institutions could say with the Apostle, ‘as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing and yet possessing all things.’…It has taught the difficult lesson of dependence upon God….with all these drawbacks to its prosperity, its interior life has gone on encouragingly, and faith and hope look forward to a brighter and more glorious future.”

I hope that you will extend a heartfelt welcome Glade Run’s new leader, and welcome him or her with the support and prayers you have bestowed upon this leadership team. Thank you for supporting Glade Run Lutheran Services and, through our agency, thousands upon thousands of God’s traumatized during my tenure at this amazing, resilient organization.

Respectfully submitted, in His name,

Reverend Charles T. Lockwood, Ed.D.
President/CEO, Glade Run Lutheran Services