Video: Reunited Families Celebrate at Five Acres

Five Acres in Altadena became a place Friday to hear tales of redemption, as three mothers recently shared stories about how a community effort and their own will helped them to piece together their families after being crushed under the wheels of drug and alcohol abuse.

The Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) in Pasadena hosted a culmination ceremony at the Altadena foster care center on Friday to honor parents who have beaten substance abuse and created a safe home for their children. The ceremony marked the last day of Los Angeles County DCFS Family Reunification Week.

Five Acres works with DCFS to provide a safe, enjoyable space for parents and their children to have monitored visits. The playroom and playground allow families to interact in more naturally than in a social worker’s office, and it is open in the evenings and on weekends when DCFS offices are closed.

Kimala Lewis, MSW and supervisor of the Pasadena office, refers to these times as “purposeful visitations” where issues are addressed and the parents have the opportunity to learn skills and get feedback from the counselors. 

Over the week we will present several of the stories of families in the program, including videos where the women and their social workers tell their stories in their own words.  Please see the video on right for the complete story of Erica Ward.

Ward is proud of being drug-free for 18 months and completing 52 hours of parenting classes. She is in the Shields for Families program, which provides a place for families to live together as they heal and offers the required parenting classes, drug program, and other services. 

“It took me less than 11 months” to complete the process of getting her children returned, she grins.

Three of her five children were living with a family member, but she had her son Kenyae, now 6, and daughter Ma-Nijah, who will be 2 in a few days, with her when her substance abuse problems caused them to be removed from her home. All of her children now live with her at Shields for Families.

Going from removal to reunification is a process that involves all parties in a plan from the beginning and seeks to provide the best fit of services for each family. Lewis stressed that the department understands the process starts even before children are taken from the home. Erica was able to get into the Shields for Families program immediately so she could see her children as often as possible.

Check back throughout the week for more stories of families impacted by the programs at Five Acres.

Download the movie