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The History of Valley Counseling
Services, Inc. The entity known today as Valley Counseling Services was established, and has been maintained thereafter, by dedicated lay people and professionals who shared a common vision and belief that psychological, behavioral, emotional, and psychiatric problems were/are treatable. The Founders realized that the most humane and efficient location for that treatment was in the community. To assure greater access for Trumbull County residents to adequate, affordable and appropriate mental health services, a structured team-based service system evolved with this agency being a significant part of the System of Care. This same dream was seven years later enacted into federal law in President Kennedy’s Community Mental Health Centers Act known as PL 94-63. President Kennedy’s Act established, for the first time, that the government had the primary and major responsibility for funding community mental health services. The dream of Valley’s Founders was brought to life in 1956, with the opening of the Trumbull County Guidance Center. The Center was a small (four professional staff!) psychiatric outpatient center. It was the first, and only, such facility in Trumbull County. Although small and poorly funded, the Center managed to hire and retain highly qualified staff who provided exceptional services. In 1972, in response to changing needs and developments in the field, the name of the organization was changed to the Trumbull County Mental Health Center. The Center began adding financial resources and creating new services. Expanding from an outpatient base, the Center developed “Pre/Post Hospital Services,” including a Partial Hospital Program. The Center added a variety of outreach programs targeting special populations such as the minority community, senior citizens, children, and rural and urban sites in northern and southeastern portions of the County. Aggressive outreach, treatment, Prevention and Consultation/Education became the programmatic thrusts of the agency. In 1985, a series of tornados hit Trumbull County and the Center immediately responded with crisis intervention services for both the victims and the responders, sensitizing the Red Cross to the need for mental health services in disasters. In 1987, the Center changed its name to Valley Counseling Services, Inc. By the early 1990’s, the Center occupied six buildings around the county and had 100 staff. In addition to the dedication of its staff and Board, another characteristic of VCS has been its creative leadership and responsiveness to the changing behavioral healthcare environment at the local, state, and national levels. Valley was one of the Founding Member Organizations of the Ohio Council of Behavioral Healthcare Providers, the MidWest Healthcare Network, Mental Health Corporation of America, AccessOHIO, and the Ohio Northeast Network (OneNet). During the 1980’s and 1990’s, the agency’s longstanding Executive Director/President, CEO, Mr. Alvin W. Beynon, was elected and/or appointed to several key leadership posts with the previously mentioned Organizations. As a Behavioral Healthcare Provider in the Twentieth-first Century, most of Valley’s resources are needed to address the needs of those who have serious emotional disorders, leaving less time and funding for programming focusing on the prevention of these disorders. Valley Counseling Services annually serves over 3,500 unduplicated clients ranging from pre-school age through geriatrics. The agency continues strong alliances and collaborations with area hospitals, schools, criminal justice and police agencies, and other agencies. We are a proud provider agency with major funding from Trumbull LifeLines. Valley Counseling Services received a three-year CARF accreditation in 2006 and currently has 80 staff located in three sites around the county. Valley Counseling Services, Inc., in 2007, continues to be a beacon of hope for many, with over 50 years of committed services to our community of Trumbull County. We hold steadfast to our mission to serve you. May 2007 |
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