At Center For Family Services, staff are recognized as the most valuable and greatest resource. The top workplace team at Center For Family Services consists of highly experienced experts in a variety of fields. Trusted staff are changemakers and thought leaders and are often the leading voice in how services are designed to best serve those in need. 

The Expert Angle offers an outlet for highly talented staff to share their knowledge with you. This forum is a place where content experts share information on topics that most closely resonate with the work they do. The Expert Angle is a collection of blog entries where our staff can explore the various entities of Center For Family Services’ mission and programs from the point of view of an expert in that role. The blog is a platform to help communities, individuals, and other social service professionals to learn and grow. 

The Value of Mentoring

Posted on: | By: Jennifer DeSimone-Jewell Development and Public Relations Specialist
Think back to when you were young. Would you be where you are today without the support of a mentor or role model? As a mentor, you have the ability to inspire a young person, show them that someone cares about them, and advise them through life’s challenges. It’s an opportunity to leave a lifelong impact on youth in need. Supportive, stable, and consistent relationships are critical in order for all young people to thrive. With your guidance, your mentee will experience a world that is bigger than what they know. You have the power to help them realize their full potential.Mentoring has…
Blog Tags: Volunteer

Wellness Series - Part 3: Everyday Wellness

Posted on: | By: Amy Urban Romaine, MA, ATR-BC, LPC, ACS, ATCS, BC-TMH, LPAT Clinical Supervisor - Center for Family Services, Grief & Traumatic Loss Services
Part 3: Everyday WellnessWelcome to part 3 of the Wellness Blog Series. This post will focus on the importance of Everyday Wellness. The first two blog posts of this series focused on coping with intense situations in life, whether it be grief and loss or major life changes. Today’s blog post is centered on everyday wellness. Building a strong foundation will assist future selves in dealing with intense situations. Once the foundation of wellness is built in a sustainable manner, it is much easier to weather the storms of adversity and improve the chances of full recovery from those…
Blog Tags: wellness

Wellness Series - Part 2: Major Life Changes and Wellness

Posted on: | By: Amy Urban Romaine, MA, ATR-BC, LPC, ACS, ATCS, BC-TMH, LPATClinical Supervisor - Center for Family Services, Grief &Traumatic Loss Services
Welcome to Part 2 of the 3 Part Wellness Blog Series. This post will  address Major Life Changes and Wellness. What is Wellness? According to a definition from Pfizer’s website: “Wellness is the act of practicing healthy habits on a daily basis to attain better physical and mental health outcomes, so that instead of just surviving, you're thriving. To understand the significance of wellness, it's important to understand how it's linked to health. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), health is defined as being ‘a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being…
Blog Tags: Mindfulness, wellness, mental health

Make the Connection - National Suicide Prevention Month

Posted on: | By: Donna Wess, MS, LPC, LCADC, ACS
 September is National Suicide Prevention Month. Many people become uncomfortable discussing suicide. It’s a topic surrounded by stigma and fear. But the more suicide is talked about, the more society can do to help prevent it. Center For Family Services invites you to take action this September by learning how you can be part of the change and help prevent suicide in your community. Let’s start with the statistics.  According to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention:•    There are about 132 suicides per day in the US•    Suicide…
Blog Tags: Suicide Prevention

Social Media and Youth Mental Health

Posted on: | By: Desiree Huffnagle, LSW, Quality Improvement Coordinator/Zero Suicide Committee
In May of 2023, Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy released a new advisory on social media and youth mental health. He urges action to ensure social media environments are healthy and safe, as previously-advised national youth mental health crisis continues.  As youth are currently on summer break and may have additional free time to use social media, it is important to share this advisory.Dr. Murthy shared that social media use by youth is nearly universal. Up to 95% of youth ages 13–17 report using a social media platform, with more than a third saying they use social media “almost…
Blog Tags: Youth Mental Health, Parenting, Childhood Wellness

Wellness Series - Part 1: Grief, Fear and Wellness

Posted on: | By: Amy Urban Romaine, MA, ATR-BC, LPC, ACS, ATCS, BC-TMH, LPATClinical Supervisor - Center for Family Services, Grief & Traumatic Loss Services
Welcome to a 3-Part Blog Series on Wellness. Part 1 - Grief, Fear and WellnessPart 2 - Major Life Changes and WellnessPart 3 - Everyday WellnessPart 1 - Grief, Fear and WellnessWhat is Wellness? According to a definition from Pfizer’s website: “Wellness is the act of practicing healthy habits on a daily basis to attain better physical and mental health outcomes, so that instead of just surviving, you're thriving. To understand the significance of wellness, it's important to understand how it's linked to health. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), health is defined…

The Basics of Belonging: Changing How We Learn

Posted on: | By: Dr. June DePonte Sernak Statewide Diversity Leadership Officer
May is Mental Health Awareness Month and an opportunity to boost our sense of belonging. Imagine being one of those kids who was always punished for talking in class. Chatting through nap time and having your seat moved away from “friendly” co-conspirators. After-school activities were welcomed to finally share thoughts that were bursting at the seams. Being alienated from peers causes such loss of a sense of belonging. When your authentic self was inquisitive searching for like-minded banter…..finding similarities to belong was paramount. This was my purpose. As a…
Blog Tags: Mental Health Awareness

National Crime Victims’ Rights Week

Posted on: | By: Amy Romaine, MA, ATR-BC, LPC, ACS, ATCS, BC-TMH Clinical Supervisor, Grief and Traumatic Loss Services
You see it on the news almost every night. You see it on social media on a regular basis. And, unfortunately it hits home for so many people in New Jersey and across the United States. Crime continues to be an issue and it causes a ripple effect across communities.Crime results in loss, grief, and trauma, and alters the lives of so many people.Awareness is one way to work toward change. The amplification of voices is another way to work toward change.This year, the National Crime Victims’ Rights Week is April 23-29, 2023. This is an opportunity to educate the community about the rights of…
Blog Tags: Victims and Trauma, Survivor Awareness, Grief and Loss, Community Challenges

Let it RAIN: Recognize, Allow, Investigate and Nurture

Posted on: | By: Amy Romaine, MA, ATR-BC, LPC, ACS, ATCS, BC-TMHClinical Supervisor, Grief and Traumatic Loss Services
The holidays are upon us. Time to surf the waves of grief. For some folks, they knew the waves were coming, as the losses have been recent. For others, there was no warning, thinking that the past stays in the past. Grief is unpredictable in that way. Seemingly unrelated moments can trigger a temporary surge of grief. As we continue to adjust to the new normal the pandemic has brought into our lives, we are realizing how our lives have been forever changed.This may be the first holiday season that feels “back to normal” even though so much has changed over the last several years. Maybe we are…

Mental Health Matters: The LGBTQIA+ Community

Posted on: | By: Riley Keenan Program Director, Coordinated Assessment Kaleidoscope Advocate
As we transition into a post pandemic world, we find ourselves frequently discussing the importance of mental health. The time to prioritize mental health is now. However, every individual and community faces unique challenges to their mental health, particularly the LGBTQIA+ community.A report from The Trevor Project showed that 73% of LGBTQIA+ youth reported experiencing symptoms of anxiety, 58% reported symptoms of depression, and 45% reported having seriously considered attempting suicide in the past year. According to the US Transgender Survey, 40% of transgender adults have attempted…
Blog Tags: mental health, LGBTQIA Community, Mental Health Struggles, LGBTQIA Resources, High Risk Occurrences
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