northwest echo

D’Veal Family and Youth Services

Instilling Hope in Youth and Families

Imagine a seven-year-old child who is playing on the floor when the door bell rings. The parent opens the door. At the door is a social worker from Child Protective Services and a police officer. They have come to take Shauna away because someone has filed a report of child abuse. Shauna cries, kicks and screams as she is taken out of her home and placed in the social worker’s car. The social worker tries to calm Shauna by giving her a teddy bear. The social worker starts the car and drives Shauna away. Shauna will now become a foster child.

Now imagine that the above scenario never had to happen. Shauna did not have to endure the emotional and physical pain of being abused. She and her parents would have received the help they needed. Their problems were resolved before Shauna had to be taken away. She could have been raised by her biological parents. Shauna would never have had to learn the words “biological” and “foster,” terms foster children quickly learn upon entering the system.

Fortunately, there is such an organization in Pasadena that can help resolve problems before they lead to foster care. D’Veal Family and Youth Services provides counseling and support to keep struggling families together.

D’Veal Family and Youth Services was founded by John McCall in 1993. “I was tired of seeing kids after the damage had already been done,” McCall said. Prior to starting his agency, McCall had a 15-year career as a social worker.

He believes early intervention is a key factor in child abuse and neglect cases because it can save the child from more damage in the future. “Early intervention instills hopefulness that life can be better and different,” McCall said. He says that most parents are too embarrassed to admit they are struggling but that families should not be afraid to ask for help.

The agency’s mission is an equation: “Balanced Families, Balanced Children, Balanced Lives.” If families have balance, then their children are balanced and everyone can live a “Balanced Life.”

D’Veal works with clients in a unique way. Therapy and rehabilitative sessions are held at children’s schools, their homes, or anywhere the client and the family are available rather than having the children and families come to the D’Veal offices. “You have to be on their turf. You have to understand the families and their situations in order to work with them,” McCall said.

An example he gave was asking the parent if the child was on a daily schedule. By visiting the home, the behavioral specialist can also observe whether the child has a desk to do homework, which shows how much the child’s education is valued. In addition, they teach the parents how to relate to a misbehaving child.

Besides the therapy sessions and in-home counseling, D’Veal also has a computer program called Functional Analysis. The child answers questions about memories, relationships, friends and parents on the computer. The answers help therapists create a treatment program for their clients. The client can use the assessment to determine career interests or college aspirations. Functional Analysis can also indicate if a client has Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) or Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and help identify areas where children might be struggling in school.

“The computer is less threatening, and we have been able to help students who were failing to pick up their grades as a result,” said Senior Facilitator Connie Lugo.

D’Veal’s staff includes therapists, behavioral specialists, psychologists, and psychiatrists. All like the unique approach to helping families and cite that as one of the many reasons they enjoy working for the organization. “D’Veal is a breath of fresh air because we are in the schools and homes,” said Behavioral Specialist Sim Jones III.

McCall is highly praised by his staff. “John is very approachable and he cares about his staff and families. He is a CEO and I still see him counseling people in his office, something which is very uncommon for a CEO,” said Brenda Huicochea, D’Veal’s Quality Assurance Manager.

The staff feels valued for their work. “Clients really appreciate the work that we do—from the grandparents to the parents to the kids,” said Keven McDaniels, Behavioral Specialist.

But, there are times when a child is in immediate danger and there is no other solution except foster care. D’Veal, however, will continue to work with the parents. Upon suspicion of child abuse or neglect, D’Veal will call Child Protective Services in front of the parents so that the parents can see how serious their problem is. If removal is warranted, staff will work with the parent and child to try to reunify the family, if possible. They will enroll the parent in parenting classes or drug and alcohol rehabilitation.

D’Veal works with 65 foster youth. McCall knows the children feel abandoned and that it is crucial for them to live in stable environments. “I tell those kids that despite the fact that they are not with their families anymore, they can still succeed,” he said. He has seen kids who have lived in as many as ten different foster homes, so he works hard to find them permanent homes.

Mentoring is a key factor in D’Veal programs. D’Veal hires youth who have participated in their programs and excelled. These youth serve as mentors and are paid through a program known as D’Veal Corps Student Workers. “There is nothing more powerful than seeing kids who have succeeded in the program,” McCall said.

D’Veal also sponsors various support groups. Recognizing that biological parents have different needs than foster parents, D’Veal has separate groups for each. Foster parents need to know how to relate to foster children, whereas biological parents may need to work on managing their anger. There are even support groups for parents who want to learn to communicate better with their teenagers. Each group has its own encouraging name, such as Achieve the Vision or FAST (Families Achieving Success Together).

D’Veal helps children with their education. They offer a summer school program and plan to open a special school for children with severe emotional and behavioral problems.

McCall and his staff have a mission to help troubled families in Pasadena and Altadena. As he states, “D’Veal helps families in need. We tell them: let us help you and work with you. We teach life skills so families and children both can be successful.”