Adult Community Services

Family Service continues to expand and strengthen programs for adults living with mental illness. By identifying and building strengths, consumers are able to improve their emotional well-being and stabilize symptoms of illness. Facilitated connections to community resources reduce isolation, and support each individual’s capacity to make healthy choices. A wide variety of programs help adults achieve higher levels of independence and an improved quality of life.

Programs include:

Adult Outpatient Program
Seasons Counseling
R.I.T.E. Center (Realizing Independence Through Empowerment)
ICMS (Integrated Case Management Services)

Success Stories...

Cindy lived with her parents in the South Jersey area for over 30 years. For much of her life, she did not engage with anyone in the community except for visits to her sister’s home due to her struggles with mental illness. She was hospitalized at Ancora State Psychiatric Hospital in 2007 ... click here to read Cindy's story

Chris has been a positive force moving through both the MICA (Mentally Ill Chemically Addicted) and prevocational program within our Adult Community Services. He has typified our motto of having the courage to change despite fluctuating anxiety, health issues and living circumstances ... click here to read Chris's story

Cindy's Story...

Cindy lived with her parents in the South Jersey area for over 30 years. For much of her life, she did not engage with anyone in the community except for visits to her sister’s home due to her struggles with mental illness. She was hospitalized at Ancora State Psychiatric Hospital in 2007. After a two year stay, Cindy was able to leave the hospital and in July 2009, move in to one of our OASIS Group Homes.

Initially Cindy seemed to adapt well to the group home setting but by Autumn 2009 she began to experience increased anxiety, short spurts of aggression and did not want to leave the house. It became difficult to find anything that would motivate her to engage outside of the home. By the end of the year, she refused to leave the home for any reason including her day treatment program and community outings. She was also becoming aggressive to others in the home.

The treatment team worked closely with Cindy and her family to find ways to reduce her isolation and aggression. Expectations were changed and much smaller steps were developed to help her reintegrate into the community. Slowly over the past six months Cindy has begun to show improvement. She spends more time outside of her bedroom, engages with others in the living room and kitchen and accompanies staff on errands. A trip to the grocery store in the Spring, led Cindy to share with staff that she had never been inside a grocery store. This small step is seen as a great stride to help Cindy integrate into the community and experience the world.

Understanding the magnitude of her isolation growing up and her willingness to move forward with treatment is a testament to Cindy’s strength. We welcome and celebrate the small steps!!

Click here to read Chris's story or click here to close

Chris's Story

Chris has been a positive force moving through both the MICA (Mentally Ill Chemically Addicted) and prevocational program within our Adult Community Services. He has typified our motto of having the courage to change despite fluctuating anxiety, health issues and living circumstances.

Chris has learned to take control of his recovery and improve his interpersonal relationships. His strong desire to progress spurs him to overcome worry-causing interactions such as communicating needs to his doctor, or working out difficulties with his boss in the prevocational program.

Chris experienced a relapse in the early part of this year. Stress from work and housing difficulties caused negative feelings that in turn led to old, negative ways of coping. Despite this, Chris’s addictive behaviors did not reemerge. He did not become dishonest or allow alcohol to resume control over his life. Instead, he used the anxiety causing events and response as a means of support for his recovery.

Chris recently obtained a job as a full-time laborer with benefits at Fort Dix and remains connected to our Haven housing program. Confident and happy with his progress, he is both excited and sad to leave the MICA Program. He now has new opportunities to successfully use the skills he learned in treatment during his time at Family Service. His continued commitment to his own recovery will allow him to take full advantage of what a sober life has to offer.

Click here to read Cindy''s story or click here to close

Partial Care Programs

Partial care programs provide consumers with the support needed to reduce or prevent psychiatric hospitalization and improve functioning in the community. Services include: group and individual counseling, case management, daily living skills, psychiatric support, medication monitoring, social skill-building, pre-vocational training, and specialized psycho-educational groups for unique populations.