Dozens of people from throughout Teller County gathered in “wraparound process” seminars this summer in Cripple Creek, exploring more effective ways to help local families who struggle with poverty and other risks to their well-being. Nonprofit groups, governmental agencies and school personnel participated in the sessions led by John VanDenBerg, Ph.D., a major developer of the wraparound social services model who teaches its principles throughout North America, Europe and Scandinavia.

It would take about five years to change the human services culture in this area to a wraparound process that responds better to the real human problems, VanDenBerg said. But places that have implemented the system, from Hawaii to Oklahoma to Norway, report encouraging evidence of the approach's ability to solve problems and even reduce costs of services.

The wraparound process asks “What does this child and family need to have a better life?” VanDenBerg said. The family itself needs to take the lead in answering that question, and the helping agencies involved should not only collaborate with one another but also have the flexibility to seek individualized and creative solutions that best fit the particular family.

they have — rather than imposing our own values,” said Ted Borden, Aspen Mine Center coordinator.

One of the signs that Colorado’s social services system is in need of an overhaul is the fact that about 2,700 children in the state are living in foster care, juvenile facilities, treatment centers and the like. “That’s an enormous amount of kids in long-term, out-of-home placement per capita,” VanDenBerg said. “About double the national average.”

The workshops took place June 13 and August 1 at Carr Manor through the efforts of the Community of Caring Foundation and Gold Belt Communities Build A Generation project with funding from the Colorado Compassion Initiative, administered by JVA Consulting, LLC. The participants seemed generally excited to keep building toward implementation of the wraparound process in Teller County.

“It's a huge commitment and it's tough to do,” VanDenBerg said, but the obstacles here are common barriers and Teller County is a step ahead of most areas because of the collaborations already in place through the Community of Caring Foundation and Aspen Mine Center.