Silverton Together began in April, 1993 as a group trained by a statewide program called Oregon Together designed to help communities assess their own risk factors for adolescent problem behavior and to develop prevention strategies to address those risk factors. As Silverton Together has evolved, we have broadened our vision to encompass a total community approach to well being.
In March, 1995 our group was designated the Community Progress Team for the Silverton area by the Marion County Children & Families Commission, a "community progress team" being defined as " a group of local citizens who take ownership of a geographic aria and champion efforts in their community to strengthen and support families."
MISSION: Our mission is to champion efforts in the Silver Falls School District boundaries, to strengthen and support families and to facilitate community cooperation in promoting health and well being of all our children, families and community.
GOALS:
1. More families will participate in life skills education and family support opportunities.
2. More children and youth will be in safe, supportive environments.
3. More community residents will know about and have access to community events, resources, services, and activities.
4. Silverton Together will be an organization which celebrates all families by demonstrating a commitment to diversity in our membership, leadership, and activities and by promoting cross cultural understanding in all community events, programs, and services.
5. Silverton Together will gather, store, and disseminate data regarding the Silverton community and act as a clearing house.
PROGRAMS:
Love and Logic
After several brainstorming sessions and community meetings with outside facilitators, Silverton Together began during the 1996-97 fiscal year by coordinating a 5 session Love and Logic parenting course for parents of pre-school and school age children. Seventy parents attended the first session and fifty-seven completed the course. Due to the popularity of the course and the preferability of learning in smaller groups, the course began to be offered two times per year in 1998. This program is on-going and to date ninety-six families through April 1999 have completed the program.
Parents and Infants Plus
This program started in August, 1996. It provides information on parenting skills, child development, and stress management, and offers peer support during the critical first year of an infant's life. During the five month program volunteers from each group are trained to facilitate their own on-going parenting support\play groups. This program is offered to all new mothers and is on-going. Currently a new group begins every three months and an average of six families graduate from each group. Many groups have continued to meet on their own.
Families Talking About Change
This program is a two evening workshop for parents and their fourth, fifth, and sixth grade children. It is meant to help families discuss the changes that come with puberty and lay a foundation for future family communication on sensitive issues. This once a year program has filled to capacity for both the 1998 and 1999 sessions.
The Silverton Together Community Connectors
Begun in the fall of 1996, this program has a two-fold purpose to work directly with families in meeting their basic needs through support and by connecting them with appropriate resources, and to connect resources themselves together through community organization. As part of this second goal, the Silverton Together Community Connectors staff committees and task forces of Silverton Together. The primary areas in which services have been provided to date include housing, translating, crisis problem solving, employment, transportation, food and domestic violence intervention. The two part-time connectors new provide services to over two hundred families per year. Efforts by the connectors have resulted in several parent education and support groups, a regular meeting between themselves, SACA and the Food Bank (the three main local service providers), a sixteen member cooking group and the formation of the Domestic Violence Task Force.
Community Calendar
In collaboration with Silverton Hospital and Historic Silverton, the first Community Calendar was published in 1996. This publication identifies the many sources of support and activities available to community members. It is a calendar of local events and a comprehensive directory of local groups and resources. The calendar is now published three time per year and over 2,000 are distributed from each printing.
The Summer Spectacular Directory was published during fiscal 1996-97 for the first time. This very popular offering continues to be distributed to all school children and over 3,000 copies are now printed each year. This directory highlights all summertime events, classes, and activities.
EVENTS:
Silverton Together sponsors a Free Family Picnic in the Park, complete with swimming, games and free family photo opportunities. This also has become an annual event and attracts over 500 people each year. A first-ever Christmas Holiday Celebration was held and drew over 700 people. This also has become an annual event. In collaboration with Izaak Walton League a Free Fish Day was begun that continues in the Spring to this day and draws upwards of 300 children and over 30 volunteers.
SUPPORT:
Also, Silverton Together provided funds that were donated to Silverton Art Association for a children's art program coordinator and 27 scholarships, equipment was purchased for the Youth Center and funding was provided to help Child Care for School Volunteers get started.
During 1997-98, in addition to the programs identified above as on-going Silverton Together collaborated with City of Silverton and Silverton Hospital on the purchase of the 14 passenger Silver Trolley which arrived late in the year and has been operational ever since.
Projects receiving funding included 17 scholarships in the Water Safe Kids campaign, on-going support for the School volunteer Child Care Program and 22 junior high students were enrolled in a summer Math Links Camp in which over 250 volunteer hours were logged.
A Youth Director Task Force was convened with the end result being an agreement with the Family YMCA of Marion and Polk Counties to provide youth and adult activities in the Silverton area. Beginning in Spring, 1998, the Silver Falls Family YMCA now offers many programs under their umbrella, including the long-worked-for Skate Park.
Additionally, projects emerged from the Parent Education Committee which has been by far the most active committee of Silverton Together. Indoor Park is a 2 times per week play group for pre-schoolers and their moms. A Parent's Support Group meets every other week with a professional volunteer counselor in attendance. Parent Share gives at home moms a chance to visit and socialize while their children play. The first Parent-Toddler Program began in the Spring with 10 completing the course. This class is designed for parents of children 18 months through 3 years. The program consists of 10 weeks of 2 hour sessions for parents while their children have supervised play. This is now an on-going program and is held 2 times per year.
1998-1999 has been primarily a year of solidifying our gains but with focus on several on-going task forces and work groups.
1. Parent Education has accomplished a great deal.
2. Domestic Violence task force has produced a small handbook for victims, sponsored a one day community wide training session, established a local phone number which ties directly into the Women's Crisis Center in Salem, and has worked closely with the Silverton Police Department to establish an advocate who is available to assist police in terms of providing information and support to victims.
3. Child Safety Net is a collaborative effort bringing together all local agencies to track referrals made to SCF on child neglect and abuse. For those deemed not serious enough for SCF intervention, the Safety Net offers non-coercive intervention to those families who are willing to accept.
4. Alcohol and Drug task force us currently negotiating with the high school REACH club about conducting a neighborhood survey, and has applied for a grant to heighten awareness of teenage deaths due to alcohol.
5. Cultural Competency task force meets every other month and focuses in inclusion of all segments of our local population.
6. Silverton Together Community Connectors have been active in furthering their efforts by setting up the first ever Multi-cultural Day. This year 14 different country backgrounds were represented and the Aztec Dancers performed. The dancers, who also originate from the Silverton Together Community Connectors are a group of ten or so Latino youth who learn and perform traditional Aztec Dance.
PLANS FOR THE FUTURE
Support for Breast-feeding - one group for English speaking and one for Spanish speaking.
Support Group for Victims of Domestic Violence - facilitator now being trained.
Hospital Health care Worker Training - coordinated by Silverton Hospital on the Domestic Violence Task Force.
Strength\Assets Mapping - a major effort to map the strengths and assets of local residents.
Head Start Program - continuing effort to establish a program in Silverton.
Family Resource Center - vision to incorporate computers, after school activities, volunteer projects, back to school supplies and clothing, and a meeting space.
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