Broadcast from Reservoir Family Wellness in Acton, Massachusetts, Peggy’s discussion with host Maria Broderick focused on her stress-reduction initiative at Beacon, “License to Chill“, and the success she has had helping Beacon students find healthy ways to deal with stress and other health challenges. The initiative is uniquely suited to Beacon’s ongoing committment to the  integration of therapeutic support for students throughout the academic schedule.

Students at Beacon who are experiencing high levels of stress, anxiety, or other emotional issues  benefit from skills that improve self-regulation such as yoga, meditation, visual imagery, relaxation breathing, and acupressure. To facilitate this, Peggy has created a Wellness Room at Beacon, a dedicated space where students can practice these techniques and even learn to incorporate elements of feng shui to their learning environments. Peggy also leads a “License to Chill” therapy group for Beacon students, where they are encouraged to explore their own self-regulation techniques as a group.

On May 7^th, Peggy presented “License to Chill”: Stress Reduction and Feng Shui in the School Setting to educators and school-based staff at the annual conference of the Massachusetts Association of 766-Approved Private Schools. Her presentation cited a recent study showing that students exposed to a relaxation response-based curriculum experienced higher grade point averages, increased self -esteem, decreased psychological distress, less aggressive behavior, improved work habits, and better attendance.

Earier this year, Walker developed a grant proposal for an Oasis Grant, seeking funding to create additional space and resources at Beacon for students to learn to better manage the stress and emotional disregulation that can impede academic success. “I love the idea of an ‘oasis’ for students,” says Peggy, adding “I hope this idea takes root in all high schools, because kids who are relaxed and focused are much more ready to learn.”

You can listen to a recording of the radio broadcast here. [mp3 format]
[Windows users: right click "Save Target As" to download; Mac users: command click and choose "Download link to disk"]

Photo by Luke Bruffee

Gala co-chairs Kari Culhane, Wendy Paul, and Deidre Lockhart led this year’s gala committee, offering their time and talents to ensure a spectacular evening. Billy Costa once again impressed in his role of event host and auctioneer, helping to raise $55,000 in the live auction alone! Gala attendees viewed  a video presentation by Chameleon Environments and guests danced the night away to the live music of GQ and the Lady.

(from left) Gala co-chairs Kari Culhane, Deidre Lockhart, and Wendy Paul

 Next year’s event will celebrate Walker’s 50^th Anniversary and will be held on Saturday, May 7, 2011 at the Westin Boston Waterfront. For more information on how to participate please contact Nicole Hand, manager of events and corporate giving at Walker, by e-mail or at 781-292-2160.

Walker will host a Blood Drive on Wednesday, February 3, 2010.

You can donate blood by visiting the Roche Family Center on the Walker Needham campus from 2:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Sign up now for an appointment by e-mail or call 1-800-RED CROSS (800-733-2767).

Meredith was a dedicated supporter of Walker for almost half a century, a relationship which began when she sought the pure milk from Needham’s Walker–Gordon Dairy for her infant son in 1957. After the dairy closed and subsequently became the site of the Walker Home For Boys, Meredith lent her support and would become the longest serving board member in Walker’s history. She summarized her motivation by saying”There is no greater thrill than to provide a child with a future.”

The widespread community support that Walker has received year after year can be traced back to the tireless and enthusiastic efforts of this one remarkable woman.

Meredith became Walker’s first community volunteer in 1968 and continued that role for more than 41 years. She formed the volunteer program which has resulted in thousands of people donating tens of thousands of hours to the Walker children and staff, and a volunteer program that continues to thrive today. A fellow board member said that “she wanted to work with the boys, to have fun, and raise money at the same time.”

Her first volunteer job was to start afternoon “clubs” for the children. A friend recalls that “The young ones had been in foster homes and didn’t know what a mother was like, to have food cooked for them. The kids would bake chocolate chip cookies or brownies at her house.” She gave the kids chores, brought them on outings in the community and shared some of her own nurturing with them.

Meredith also started the philanthropy program which has raised millions of dollars to support Walker’s nationally acclaimed programs. She founded the first fund-raising group, the “Friends of Walker” and raised support through barn sales, auctions and white elephant sales. She and her husband Donald chaired the first Walker golf tournament in 1988. Today, the Fore the Children Golf Tournament is a highly anticipated major charitable event in the region and has raised more than $ 2 million since it first began. She was involved in the first and every subsequent capital campaign which helped to build the housing and school buildings.

Her passion for volunteering at Walker was spread throughout every aspect of governance and policy at Walker. A member of the strategic human resources committee and the nominating committees, and as secretary of the Board of Trustees she advocated for excellence in leadership as well as for the optimal employment experience for the more than 250 Walker employees. She held numerous positions on the board of trustees and corporation through her 41-year tenure and she recruited many other talented people to join her.

Meredith will always hold a special place in the history of Walker as a champion of The Other 23 Hours. Walker‘s founder Al Trieschman inspired her involvement at Walker through his groundbreaking book which described the benefits of a powerful therapeutic environment for helping troubled children   Says one colleague, “the idea that you are always learning in life, that is what attracted Meredith.  She became a part of the other 23 hours, not just caretaking but reclaiming a child’s life. She was the other 23 hours.”

A memorial service will be held on Saturday, January 16, 2010 at 10:00 A.M. at the Congregational Church of Needham, 1154 Great Plain Avenue, Needham.  A reception will follow at the Wellesley Country Club. 

Friends can offer their condolences in an on-line memorial guest book.

The shed features storage space for outdoor toys and sports equipment, an electrical outlet suitable for low-power devices like radios, and a dusk-to-dawn motion sensor for an outdoor light. A light inside the shed also allows children at Walker to see the inner workings of the solar power equipment. 

During installation in late September, Brown was at the Walker Needham campus to provide an astronomy lesson for the students at the Walker School while demonstrating a design feature of the shed. He adjusted the solar panels to their “fall” position, to account for the autumnal equinox, and he plans to visit again in the spring to readjust the panels to take full advantage of the increased sunlight. 

Brown became connected with Walker several years ago, reading books to children in the Walker CBAT (a crisis and stabilization program) and volunteering with other members of his Needham church. So when he began looking for a place to showcase his first project, “Walker was my first choice.” 

Along with the many hours of labor donated by Brown, funding for the shed was also provided by the participants of One Penny Per Mile. Car owners can pledge one cent for each mile they drive to offset emissions and other environmental consequences of driving. Donations are designated for future sustainable energy projects for area schools. 

You can find out more about how you can support One Penny Per Mile by visiting their website.

Holiday Pop , by Robert, age 13
“Have a Sweet Holiday”
(Inside message: blank)

  

Penguins , by John, age 8 and Langdon, age 10
Holidays are the best because you’re with your family!
(Inside message: blank)

Home For the Holidays , by Matt, age 13, and Collin, age 12
(Inside message: “Warm Winter Greetings”)

   

Snow Plow , by Skyler, age 11
“Let It Snow!”
(Inside message: “Happy Holidays”)

 One package of 20 cards with envelopes: $10.00

Your purchase helps to support the children and families served each year by Walker academic and therapeutic programs.  All cards feature a brief description of Walker on the back. 

If you would like to purchase Walker holiday cards, please contact Amy Perna, Walker annual fund manager, by email or at 781-292-2110.

Among the Beacon High School submissions is the photograph below, created on 35mm color film with a pinhole camera that the student constructed himself.

Last semester, the students created a range of work in traditional and experimental photography classes taught by Beacon photography teacher Véronique d’Entremont. “This exhibition is a great opportunity to have a number of our students’ work recognized” she says.

The students will attend an artists’ reception on November 22. The photographs can be seen on the second floor of the State Transportation Building at 10 Park Plaza in Boston. The exhibition opened October 15 and runs until November 27.

Last month Ethan and Alex visited the Walker Needham campus with their father Ken, and dropped off a carload of presents—toys and gift certificates collected at each of their birthday parties earlier this year and donated to children in residential programs at Walker.

The boys began donating their birthday gifts to Walker in 2007, and for the past three years they have asked friends and family who attend their birthday parties to bring a gift for a child at Walker. Sometimes they even include a Walker wish list of toys and other items on the party invitation, and several of their guests have been similarly inspired to designate Walker as the beneficiary of gifts from their own birthday celebrations.

The two brothers, 8 and 6 years old, learned about Walker from their mother Jill. “I wanted to help them understand and appreciate how fortunate we are, and how important it is to help others,” she said. “The Walker School helps kids who are about the same age as Ethan and Alex, and it is nearby, so on our visits they could see that they were helping kids who, despite their challenges, were a lot like them.”

The two boys look forward to the gift drop-off each year, as six-year-old Alex explains: “We like it, because other people don’t have toys, so if we give it to them, they can play too.”

While visiting Walker, they were treated to birthday cupcakes and were presented with certificates of appreciation. They have also received a heartfelt thank you from Walker executive director Richard W. Small. “Through their generosity, Ethan and Alex are helping to teach a new generation about the importance of philanthropy.”

If you would like to find out how you can turn your special celebration into an opportunity to contribute to the well-being of children in residential care at Walker, please contact Amy Perna, Walker annual fund manager, for more information.

This year the first place award for low net score went to the team led by a special guest—former longtime Red Sox rightfielder Dwight Evans. He was joined by tournament teammates Richard Beradino, George Psyhogeos, and Dr. Tom Burke. Terry O’Connor led the first place winners for low gross, along with his fellow team members Douglas Moran, Shawn Mato, and Jeff Campbell.

An active tournament committee, led by John Boyle and Paul Shorthose, ensured an enjoyable day on the course and a post-round program packed with unique auction items. Charity auctioneer, Harry Rose led the bidding on a wide range of auction prizes, including a once-in-a-lifetime helicopter ride over Boston. 

“We are fortunate to have so many generous and dedicated friends,” said Walker executive director Richard W. Small.  ”And we are grateful for the support of so many corporations that share a steadfast committment to improving our communities through philanthropy.”

This year’s tournament sponsors included Intex Solutions, Inc., Proactive Community, United Benefit Services, Middlesex Savings Bank, ATG, Bank of America, The Thordike Family, John and Mary Boyle, and Pete and De Simone.

If you are interested in serving on next year’s golf committee or would like to learn more about the tournament, please contact Nicole Hand, Walker manager of events and corporate giving, for more information.

 The truckload of luggage was a donation was from the North Andover-based Suitcases4Kids. The suitcases will be given to children in Walker residential treatment programs—kids who often arrive at our Needham campus with a hastily gathered assortment of clothes and personal belongings. The suitcases will provide them with an alternative to the plastic garbage bags they often use transport their clothes and personal items.

 The Suitcases For Kids project began in Florida in 1995 when 10-year-old Aubyn Burnside learned that the average child in foster care moves three to four times. Adding to this disruption for some children are multiple psychiatric hospitalizations and admissions into residential programs like Walker.

 After the project lost momentum at the beginning of the decade, Suitcases4Kids was revived by Ron Nickerson, a former social worker for kids in specialized foster care and residential program director. He understands more clearly than most people how multiple foster placements can create stress and serial disruption. He is currently a foster dad to several boys with reactive attachment disorder, a diagnosis common to children who have experienced an odyssey of program placements and foster homes.

 Several of the suitcases were immediately given to children in the Walker Community-Based Treatment unit, a Needham Campus-based emergency stabilization program for children between three and ten years old and who arrived in psychiatric crisis—in some cases the result of severe trauma, abuse or neglect. Other suitcases were given to specific children at Walker who have experienced recent family disruption or who are preparing for reunification or a new foster family. The rest of the suitcases are in storage and will be given to children who are admitted to Walker over the next year.

 To find out more about Suitcases4Kids or to learn how you can help, visit their website.