VAN WERT, Ohio – The Marsh Foundation School held its annual spring celebration on Friday, May 22. The day included piano recitals, a musical production of The Wizard of Oz, a graduation ceremony and a luncheon. A total of 10 students were honored for receiving their high school diplomas.
Many of the youth’s friends and families, as well as community members joined in the celebration. More than 35 students were honored for their accomplishments throughout the school year. Following the festivities in the auditorium, everyone in attendance enjoyed a luncheon in the cafeteria.
Serving children and families since 1922, The Marsh Foundation is a not-for-profit children’s services agency that provides behavioral treatment in a variety of settings. Services include group homes, foster care, an intensive treatment program and independent living. Located in Van Wert, Ohio, the organization’s group homes are licensed for up to 30 children ages 7 – 17, offers an on-campus school for grades 2 – 12 and provides a variety of clinical services to group home residents, foster children and community members.
The mission of The Marsh Foundation is to inspire hope, to teach and to care for children and families. For more information about The Marsh, visit www.marshfoundation.org.
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VAN WERT, Ohio – Again this year, an egg hunt was the highlight of Easter Sunday on The Marsh Foundation Campus. It was all made possible by the Shirley Haight family, who sponsored the festivities for the fifth straight year. Haight’s daughter, Cindy Henderson, went above and beyond again this year to make Easter even more special for youth currently residing at The Marsh Foundation.
In the 1940s, Shirley Haight came to live at The Marsh. Now, her daughters and grandson continue to give back to the campus at Easter time. The family provided eggs, baskets and gifts for all of the youth on campus. Although Haight passed away in 1988, her family has made a tradition out of donating. It was a memorable day and enjoyed tremendously by Marsh Foundation youth.
Serving children and families since 1922, The Marsh Foundation is a not-for-profit children’s services agency that provides behavioral treatment in a variety of settings. Services include group homes, foster care, an intensive treatment program and independent living. Located in Van Wert, Ohio, the organization’s group homes are licensed for up to 36 children ages 7 – 17, offers an on-campus school for grades 2 – 12 and provides a variety of clinical services to group home residents, foster children and community members.
The mission of The Marsh Foundation is to inspire hope, to teach and to care for children and families. For more information about The Marsh, visit www.marshfoundation.org.
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VAN WERT, Ohio – The Marsh Foundation ‘Marsh Grown’ garden program will be holding their annual spring plant sale on Saturday, May 9, from 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. in The Marsh Foundation greenhouse. Preorders are being taken through April 18. All proceeds will go to the campus youth garden program. The historic Marsh Homestead will also be open for public tours the day of the sale.
Available for purchase are petunia quarts and hanging baskets as well as a variety of one quart perennials. The perennials include; black-eyed susan, great blue lobelia, wild bergamot, cardinal flower, purple coneflower, prairie blazing star and butterfly weed.
The Marsh Grown youth garden program is dedicated to helping young people develop a sense of land stewardship and learn the importance of healthy food. Participants are taught valuable gardening skills throughout the season. In addition, the program serves as a catalyst for youth to develop important job skills for future employment. Throughout the summer, the garden crew grows vegetables and sells them at local the farmer’s market for income.
Participants in the Marsh Grown garden crew are youth who are a part of The Marsh Foundation’s Independent Living Group. They are all 15 ½ years of age or older and are working on skills that will help them be successful adults. The garden program is an opportunity for them to interact with peers and adults, develop quality job skills and learn how to grow healthy food.
To place an order, please contact activities coordinator, Sherry Grone at 419.605.2512 or via e-mail at . You can download an order form below.
The Marsh Foundation is a not-for-profit children’s services agency that provides behavioral treatment in a variety of settings. Services include group homes, family foster care, an intensive treatment program and independent living. Located in Van Wert, Ohio, the organization’s group homes are licensed for up to 36 children ages 7 – 17, offers an on-campus school for grades 2 – 12 and provides a variety of clinical services to group home residents, foster care children and community members.
Download your order form here: 2015 Marsh Grown Pre
VAN WERT, Ohio – For the past several years, the youth at The Marsh Foundation have completed service projects during their spring break that revolve around the theme of serving others. This year, they continued their efforts.
Activities coordinator Sherry Grone coordinated the week’s projects. On two different days, boys from campus visited The Lima Rescue Mission where they volunteered their time to prepare and serve a meal. A group of girls spent time volunteering with Habitat for Humanity. In addition, a group of independent living aged youth prepared and served the meal Friday evening at the Van Wert Bread & Bowl at First United Methodist.
According to Grone, the projects were in an effort to make the youth more aware of issues such as homelessness and hunger. Service is a strong component of The Marsh program that works to instill a sense of stewardship in its youth.
George, Hilinda and Katie Marsh left a strong legacy by being compassionate and helping the less fortunate in the Van Wert community. Hilinda, especially, left behind writings that were very spiritual in nature. In her funeral memorial it was quoted, “Many were the days when she went about in her well-provisioned carriage, helping the sick and needy, in the very joy of her Master who went about doing good. In the church [she was] a humble and conscientious follower of the Christ; a leader for years in the Ladies’ Society of the church. Our sense of loss is deep; we shall ever hold her services in grateful remembrance.” The Marsh Foundation continues to build on and carry out that legacy and this is the inspiration behind these service projects.
Serving children and families since 1922, The Marsh Foundation is a not-for-profit children’s services agency that provides behavioral treatment in a variety of settings. Services include group homes, foster care, an intensive treatment program and independent living. Located in Van Wert, Ohio, the organization’s group homes are licensed for up to 36 children ages 7 – 17, offers an on-campus school for grades 2 – 12 and provides a variety of clinical services to group home residents, foster children and community members.
The mission of The Marsh Foundation is to inspire hope, to teach and to care for children and families. For more information about The Marsh, visit www.marshfoundation.org.
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VAN WERT, Ohio – Youth at The Marsh Foundation are once again selling poinsettias for the holiday season. All proceeds from the sale will go to the campus’ Marsh Grown gardening program. The plants make beautiful decorations and/or holiday gifts.
There are three sizes available. The multi-bloom plants are available in 4.5 inches for $3.50, 6.5 inches for $8 and 8.5 inches for $15. The 4.5” plant is available in red, white or pink. The 6.5” and 8.5” plants are available in red, burgundy, marble (pink and cream) or jingle bells (red with white speckles). All proceeds will go to the Marsh Grown program for The Marsh Foundation youth. Orders must be placed before Friday, November 14 and can be picked up on Saturday, Dec.6 from 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. during the greenhouse holiday open house.
To order, complete an order form found here: 2014 Holiday Poinsettia Order Form. Or, call Sherry Grone at 419.238.1695 ext. 270 to place your order.
Serving children and families since 1922, The Marsh Foundation is a not-for-profit children’s services agency that provides behavioral treatment in a variety of settings. Services include group homes, family foster care, an intensive treatment program and independent living. Located in Van Wert, Ohio, the organization’s group homes are licensed for up to a total of 30 children ages 7 – 17, offers an on-campus school for grades 2 – 12 and provides a variety of clinical services to group home residents, foster children and community members.
The mission of The Marsh Foundation is to inspire hope, to teach and to care for children and families. For more information about The Marsh, visit www.marshfoundation.org.
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Photo Caption: Last year, during the poinsettia fundraiser, The Marsh Foundation greenhouse was full of the beautiful holiday plants.
VAN WERT, Ohio – Project Believe is no stranger to The Marsh Foundation. For the past two years, the non-profit organization has made visits to the campus to deliver Christmas presents and Valentine’s for youth. This year, they made an additional visit with a delivery of backpacks and school supplies.
The organization, which originated in 2009, has continued to grow and expand. They’ve established a board of trustees and have dramatically increased their giving from just a few Christmas presents that year. Tammie Rafferty, the group’s founder, was inspired to help others by her own daughter’s circumstances.
Rafferty, along with trustees Frank Scenna and Gina Duncan, visited the campus to present the backpacks and supplies to Mr. Robbie Breese, Marsh Foundation School Principal and students.
“We feel very fortunate that Project Believe has chosen to continue to assist The Marsh Foundation in our mission of inspiring hope to our children,” said Breese. “Our student leadership team was very excited to accept the backpacks and is very proud of the opportunity to present them to their peers.”
You can learn more about Project Believe by visiting their website at www.projectbelive.net. Or, you can contact Rafferty directly at .
Serving children and families since 1922, The Marsh Foundation is a not-for-profit children’s services agency that provides behavioral treatment in a variety of settings. Services include group homes, treatment and family foster care, an intensive treatment program and independent living. Located in Van Wert, Ohio, the organization’s group homes are licensed for up to 30 children ages 7 – 17, offers an on-campus school for grades 2 – 12 and provides a variety of clinical services to group home residents, foster children and community members.
The mission of The Marsh Foundation is to inspire hope, to teach and to care for children and families. For more information about The Marsh, visit www.marshfoundation.org.
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Photo caption: (L to R) Gina Duncan, Tammie Rafferty and Frank Scenna (far right) from Project Believe present backpacks and school supplies for the 30 group home students at The Marsh Foundation School to Robbie Breese (center), principal and director of education at The Marsh Foundation.
VAN WERT, Ohio – The Marsh Foundation ‘Marsh Grown’ garden program celebrated the end of the summer growing season with a Harvest Meal for staff, peers and Trustees. The meal was held recently at the First Presbyterian Church in Van Wert and featured many items grown in The Marsh Foundation garden as well as other local products. It was entirely prepared by the garden crew.
According to Marsh Foundation activities coordinator, Sherry Grone, this year’s program has been very successful in her eyes. “Our crew has had the chance to grow in maturity, responsibility and respect through our garden program,” she said. “I also hope they have grown in respect for themselves as they develop new confidence through their job skills. One of the program’s goals is to guide them to a hope for their future; to help them connect to the larger community and find their place and maybe even their passion in the process.”
The Marsh Grown youth garden program is dedicated to helping young people develop a sense of land stewardship and learn the importance of healthy food. Participants are taught valuable gardening skills throughout the season. In addition, the program serves as a catalyst for youth to develop important job skills for future employment.
Throughout the summer, the garden crew grows vegetables and sells them at the farmer’s market for income. The group will continue to be at the Van Wert Farmer’s Market on Fox Road on Saturdays from 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. through October.
Participants in the Marsh Grown garden crew are youth who are a part of The Marsh Foundation’s Independent Living Group. They are all 15 ½ years of age or older and are working on skills that will help them be successful adults. The garden program is an opportunity for them to interact with peers and adults, develop quality job skills and learn how to grow healthy food.
Serving children and families since 1922, The Marsh Foundation is a not-for-profit children’s services agency that provides behavioral treatment in a variety of settings. Services include group homes, treatment and family foster care, an intensive treatment program and independent living. Located in Van Wert, Ohio, the organization’s group homes are licensed for up to 30 children ages 7 – 17, offers an on-campus school for grades 2 – 12 and provides a variety of clinical services to group home residents, foster children and community members.
The mission of The Marsh Foundation is to inspire hope, to teach and to care for children and families.
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VAN WERT, Ohio – The Foster Family-based Treatment Association (FFTA) recently held its annual national conference in Orlando, Fla. The Marsh Foundation is a member of the association and not only sent foster families and staff to the conference for training this year, but was also privileged to have a team of staff present a workshop at the conference.
Laura Beckett-Avery, foster care supervisor and Pamela Reagan, foster care consultant, presented ‘Don’t Take it Personally, but I Hate You,’ a workshop focused on building positive relationships between foster child and parent. “Building positive relationships can be just as difficult as it is important,” said Beckett-Avery. “Foster children’s past relationships and experiences often create walls that hinder their ability to bond with others,” she said.
The workshop focused on working through a child’s preconceived notions and earning trust. “A main motivation for becoming a foster parent is to help children feel safe and cared for. It can be discouraging when this is met with resistance from the foster children,” said Reagan.
There were nearly 30 attendees at the workshop. In addition to leading the workshop, Reagan and Beckett-Avery had the opportunity, along with other Marsh Foundation foster parents, to attend other workshops. “It was a great learning experience for us and a great opportunity to gather information and resources and bring it back to others at The Marsh,” said Beckett-Avery.
The Foster Family-based Treatment Association (FFTA) was established in 1988 to develop, promote, and support Treatment Foster Care (TFC). Since that time, FFTA has grown to become the only national, non-profit association that represents treatment foster care programs across North America. FFTA’s more than 400 member agencies are located in nearly every U.S. state and Canadian province and provide treatment foster care services to over 50,000 children and youth each year and a larger array of child welfare and mental health services to over 600,000 children and youth.
Serving children and families since 1922, The Marsh Foundation is a not-for-profit children’s services agency that provides behavioral treatment in a variety of settings. Services include group homes, foster care, an intensive treatment program and independent living. Located in Van Wert, Ohio, the organization’s group homes are licensed for up to 30 children ages 7 – 17, offers an on-campus school for grades 2 – 12 and provides a variety of clinical services to group home residents, foster children and community members.
The mission of The Marsh Foundation is to inspire hope, to teach and to care for children and families. For more information about The Marsh, visit www.marshfoundation.org.
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The Lincolnview Local Board of Education hired a new principal for The Marsh Foundation School during its June meeting on Monday.
Lincolnview alumnus and teacher Robbie Breese was given a three-year limited administrative contract as the new Marsh School principal, effective the 2014-15 school year. Breese replaces Roger Salisbury, who retired at the end of the past school year.
Breese is a 2002 graduate of Lincolnview High School and earned a bachelor’s degree from Wright State University and his master’s degree from Bowling Green State University. Prior to his hiring as Marsh School principal, Breese was an elementary physical education teacher and assistant athletic director. The board accepted Breese’s resignation from his elementary teaching job so that he could take the Marsh School administrative position.
Photo caption: New Marsh School Principal Robbie Breese (left) shakes hands with Lincolnview Superintendent Jeff Snyder. (Dave Mosier/Van Wert independent)
VAN WERT, Ohio – The Marsh Foundation School held its annual spring celebration on Wednesday, May 28. The day included piano recitals, a musical production of The Wizard of Oz, a graduation ceremony and a luncheon. A total of seven students were honored for receiving their high school diplomas.
Many of the youth’s friends and families, as well as community members joined in the celebration. More than 30 students were honored for their accomplishments throughout the school year. Following the festivities in the auditorium, everyone in attendance enjoyed a luncheon in the cafeteria.
Serving children and families since 1922, The Marsh Foundation is a not-for-profit children’s services agency that provides behavioral treatment in a variety of settings. Services include group homes, foster care, an intensive treatment program and independent living. Located in Van Wert, Ohio, the organization’s group homes are licensed for up to 30 children ages 7 – 17, offers an on-campus school for grades 2 – 12 and provides a variety of clinical services to group home residents, foster children and community members.
The mission of The Marsh Foundation is to inspire hope, to teach and to care for children and families. For more information about The Marsh, visit www.marshfoundation.org.
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Photo caption:
A graduate receives his diploma from Lincolnview Superintendant Jeff Snyder (left) and Marsh Trustee Gary Corcoran.