Though funding oral health programs is our most mission-sensitive giving, we often find other ways to help our communities. Since oral health is essential to general health, we particularly appreciate opportunities to help programs contributing to overall health and wellness. Recently we were able to again help The Chase Home, in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, by investing $2,500 in its food program.
The Chase Home has an interesting history. It was founded in 1877 as an orphanage for children under 14. No longer an orphanage, in the 1960s, it became a treatment level residential program for youth. During its long history, services have expanded to include the families of the children and youth it works with and the broader community.
The Food Program supports the participates in its successful residential treatment program by making it possible for the staff providing therapeutic, clinical, and vocational support to teach them and their families about making healthy eating choices. The food purchased in supermarkets and at local farms supplements the produce grown in The Chase Home garden.
The Chase Home also provides a home-based program offering services to at-risk youth. Another program focuses on teaching life skills needed for older youth to transition from living at The Chase Home or with their parents in distressed circumstances to living independently. It also provides much-needed group and individual substance abuse counseling to youth and families in Portsmouth and a dozen or so towns in eastern Rockingham County.
To learn more about The Chase Home’s program to address food insecurity and teach good nutrition, visit its blog at Fighting Food Insecurity | The Chase Home | At-Risk Youth Services