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December 8, 2004
Re: Whitmore Academy
To Whom It May Concern:
Our son XXXXX has been at the Whitmore Academy for
six months now. My wife and I took custody of him when he
was 16 year old. His mother was going to make him a ward
of the
State of Maryland after several instances that she could
not handle. Instead we obtained the custody in the hopes
of being able to support him enough with a different life
style to make a difference in his attitude and life. However
after two months, we realized that his attitude and the
use of illegal drugs were bigger than both of us and we all
needed
help.
We had him transported to the Academy at Ivy Ridge (managed
by WWASP) out of pure desperation in a crisis situation.
We were promised that he would obtain counseling, education,
and behavioral modification. Needless to say after not being
able to speak with him for six months, being required to
attend mandatory family counseling in order to be able to
see him
someday, and weekly reports from his family representative
that indicated to us that he was not progressing at all and
actually his attitude was getting worse.
When it came to the point that they were going to deny him
medical attention because he was not a level 2 after six
months, and the family representative indicating that she "just
did not know what to do with him", a huge red flag went
up and we realized that we needed to get him out of this
WWASP program and quickly.
My wife researched other programs available with recommendations
from PURE. Together we weighed the pros and the cons of three
different programs available at that time, and inevitably
decided that the Whitmore was the place for XXXXX to be transported
as he was certainly not ready to come home. After going through
the above situation with the WWASP Program we were very reluctant
believing anything that any of the programs were telling
us. Could you blame us? Needless to say, the Whitmore Academy
had a family therapist, Tim Lowe, who was not only informed
about the program but very sympathetic about our situation.
Knowing that this program was going to allow us to speak
with XXXXX and that we would begin family counseling almost
immediately, was the answer that we were looking for.
XXXXX was transported within one week from Ivy Ridge to
the Whitmore Academy. What a wonderful transition not only
for
XXXXX, but for us! We were able to speak with XXXXX immediately
after six long months and shortly after that began our every
other week family counseling which we believe has made us
a lot closer as a family working on issues that need to be
looked at and resolved prior to him coming home. Instead
of attempting to keep us away from our son and the problems
that we had to face and resolve, the Whitmore Academy encourages
that a family work together to begin healing. We are also
able to speak with him every Sunday via telephone which is
wonderful because we actually can see how his week went and
hear his voice ensuring us that his is alright and making
progress each week.
Two and one half months after XXXXX arrived at the Whitmore
Academy, the academy was having family weekend. There was
no way that we were going to miss the opportunity to see
our son for the first time in nearly eight months, but it
also gave us the opportunity to see for ourselves how the
Whitmore's
program was run.
Mark was the first one to greet us-warm and down to earth!
We then got to see XXXXX and that of course was the best
day we had in nearly eight months! He was happy, healthy,
and working
the program even in the 2-1/2 months that he had been at
the Whitmore. Finally, we had the opportunity to meet Cheryl.
My wife hugged her with open arms and thanked her for taking
care of our son. The weekend was a wonderful experience as
we were then allowed to take XXXXX with us for several days
and actually have time away from the academy to speak with
him about the Whitmore without monitoring. Not once did he
ever indicate to us any type of physical or emotional abuse.
In fact we even took another young man (XXXXX) with us for
an overnight, and between XXXXX and (XXXXX), only good things
were spoke about the academy. (XXXXX) was getting ready to
graduate the program and also graduate from high school.
He would be leaving within the next week and was already
enrolled at a community college in his home time. What a
success story.
XXXXX is obviously very fond of Mark as all we heard was
how great he was and everything that Mark could do (which
seemed to be everything imaginable). XXXXX made sure that
he was in constant contact with Cheryl (not per our request)
with him calling her every several hours to let her know
where he was. It was amazing seeing the respect he had gained
towards Mark and Cheryl in only a few short months.
Throughout the weekend we did a lot of things together as
a family unit (lunches, dinner, riding programs and programs
geared towards each of the children). It was a wonderful
experience and you could see the love that Mark and Cheryl
had for each of these children. Not only do Mark and Cheryl
support and love our son but so do the rest of her family
including their daughter's and son-in-laws. Combined with
a wonderful family therapist, XXXXX has made unbelievable
progress. He is now working on graduating on time from high
school where at this time last year, graduation was not even
an option as we was skipping school constantly. His goal
is to complete the program and then come home and go to college!
What a remarkable thing to hear our son say! He has been
taught to believe in himself from the support of Cheryl and
Mark, and not to be forgotten, the other kids that are there
that help each other to stay positive on a daily basis.
We are very proud of XXXXX and we know that if he did not
want to succeed for himself, he would not (as we saw at Ivy
Ridge). But he has turned around 180 degrees and we truly
believe that with the proper resources (the program he is
in), he has been given a gift from Cheryl and Mark that we
believe that all kids should have the opportunity to experience.
He knows the true meaning of family and friends (as he expresses
to us), he has learned about accountability for his actions,
and he is in the process of becoming a great leader instead
of the follower.
We are very proud of our son and we know that with the life
long skills that he is learning at the Whitmore, he is truly
on his way to being a productive, secure, and positive young
man that we could have only dreamed about a hear ago. He
is becoming that person each day with the guidance and love
from Cheryl and Mark. Without their program we might not
be able to say that today!
If you have any further questions or concerns, please feel
free to contact us.
With sincere regards,
Daniel & Sandra Milliken
410-923-3301
keepsakesandkollectibles@comcast.net
Copyright © 2004,
Woodbury Reports, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
(This article may not be reproduced without written approval of the publisher.)
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