An Invitation
Every day, in countless ways, Family Service Madison affirms and enriches the lives it touches, and we're inviting you to help with the healing.  When you attend the August 13 We Are Family event, you are helping to make our vital work possible.  

We're planning an evening of food, drink, music, auctions, raffles and a wine pull so that you can have fun while doing good.  We'll be at the CUNA Mutual Conference Center on Mineral Point Road in Madison from 5:30 until 8:00.

If you'd like to take that extra step and help sponsor the event, please contact Sherry Schultz at (608) 316-1153 or sherrys@fsmad.org

 
True Grit

I thought I knew FSM when I arrived a month ago. I 've  learned I was wrong. More importantly, I've  learned that what I didn't know is  at once both banal and beautiful, simultaneously terrifying and profoun d. 

I knew Dave Johnson, his staff, and the FSM
boards had, over the past two decades, built an agency with unparalleled breadth of servi ce and a cutting-edge business model. I knew the staff's reputatio n for empathy, intelligence, and effectiveness. I knew the face of FSM, the image easily  seen from the outside. I've since learned that the heart, the muscle, the marrow are so much  more.

What happens through FSM reflects the soul of our species, as we face the worst of our weaknesses and reveal the most sacred of our strengths. Recognizing the part of ourselves that lurks in the dark corners of our mirrors requires a rare courage; healing our broken selves and broken relationships demands unthinkable vigor. Barriers of ego, walls of fear, and mountains of scars must be overcome. Honesty about ourselves, with ourselves, is brutal. This work defines true grit.

There are no miracles here, there is only people helping people through the hardest work of their lives. Here, there is restoration, renewal, and redemption -- daily, discreetly, and deeply. True grit works. Perhaps it's all that ever has.

My challenge (with which I'll be asking your help) is to tell this story and, through the telling, create the depth and breadth of support that will enable FSM to serve this community for another century. At least. Stay tuned.

--Russ King
CEO Family Service Madison


Interested in working at FSM?   Check out our opportunities here!
Make Your Mouse Roar
Social media - when used strategically over time - is the most powerful tool for communicating and researching the world has ever seen. It is not, however, a magic bean that grows overnight into agency success. It's a platform for real work.  At FSM, we're putting new effort into the work that Facebook can do for us in spreading the word about the life-affirming services we provide and finding people and organizations who will support FSM.  And we're asking for your help.
When you find our Facebook page, "like" the page, and follow the page, you're making a difference.  When you like and share FSM posts that show up in your timeline, you're spreading the word to your Facebook friends -- some of whom will do the same, spreading the word even ever wider circles -- and making your computer mouse roar (well, OK, or your touchpad).  You never know:  You might even find an interesting post or two to read.

Featured Program: Bridges to Families Birth to Three

The Bridges to Families Birth to Three services include therapy and service coordination are provided in the child's natural environment (home, day care, etc) .

The state completed a comprehensive review of Dane County's Birth to Three program in 2003 and found that it met or exceeded most of the review standards. Surveys of families and referral networks have revealed that the program enjoys high levels of satisfaction among the families and professionals who have been involved with the program.

Children are eligible for services when they have a diagnosis that carries a high probability of later delays, a delay of 25% in one or more of the following areas:
  • Cognition
  • Physical/Motor Skills
  • Communication
  • Social/Emotional
  • Adaptive Behavior/self help
  • Developing atypically

Children referred to the Bridges to Families Birth to Three program are evaluated by a team of specialists within 45 days of referral to determine eligibility and develop individual family outcomes.