Family Service Association

Welcome to Family Service Association!

Family. That’s the first word in the name of our organization, Family Service Association, and it’s what we’re all about.We’re an umbrella agency that provides a variety of programs, from teaching new parents proper childcare skills to helping families get out of debt, from doing chores for the elderly and/or handicapped to assisting in the fight against tobacco use, from providing shelter for abused women and children to preventing child abuse in the first place. Sooner or later, every family goes through a stormy time.We’re here to build strong families so they’ll be able to cope with the storms of life.When the dark clouds roll in, don’t forget your umbrella: Family Service Association.

Credit Counseling
Whether it’s the lack of it or how it’s spent, money is the No. 1 reason couples argue. Credit Counseling works with families to teach them how to budget money, read credit reports, and improve their credit. If someone is behind in paying the bills, the agency acts as a liaison between that person and creditors to create a payment plan.

Chores / Attendant Care
Simple household chores, from dusting to meal preparation, weren’t so simple for a woman with cancer and her husband with heart problems. “They saved my life. I couldn’t keep up with everything,” client Barbara said of the Chores workers.Chores services are provided to the elderly and disabled.

Domestic Violence Shelter
In the words of a client, “Our society has a responsibility to protect its women and children ... to give them a safe place in which to overcome the horrendous effects of trauma that they have endured. These women and children are survivors. They come to the program to obtain serenity and, more often than not, they bring with them the determination to start the process of healing to rebuild their lives.” In 2006, the shelter served 76 women just like her and their 96 children. The shelter provides safety while helping women and children restore their lives to become independent.

Family Educators
Family Educators work with families in which Child Protective Services has found neglect or abuse.Through role-modeling, Family Educators teach parenting and basic life skills, such as personal hygiene, house-cleaning, and how to discipline a child. Educators often testify in court and play a role in determining whether a child is removed from a home.

Healthy Families
Even before a baby is born, Healthy Families identifies expectant mothers who may be at risk -- and put the newborn at risk -- of an unhealthy lifestyle, neglect, or abuse. At-risk families receive the tools they need to create and maintain a healthy environment in which to raise children. Support for parents includes activities to promote bonding with the baby. Developmental assessments are also made. If there are additional needs, the family can be referred to other agencies that can help.

Prevent Child Abuse
Prevent Child Abuse educates the community about the signs of child abuse and neglect so that people can report it and the child can get the help and protection he or she needs. PCA trains people when and how to report abuse and/or neglect, and teaches children the difference between good touches and bad touches.

Tobacco Coalition
Tobacco is not only harmful to the user, but also those around him or her. The cost of tobacco takes away much-needed money for many families. In addition to those reasons for smoking cessation, smoking bans have pressured many smokers to kick the habit. The coalition’s program provides smokers with the information and tools to stop smoking.