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Lac du Flambeau Family Resource Center Clinical Director Kelly Day walks a similar path to those who seek help from her and her team of therapists. She shares her story here to provide inspiration and hope.
Kelly struggled with her own addiction and has over 14 years sobriety. She’s felt the shame, the judgment, the uncertainty of where to start, the discomfort of changing her life. Kelly shared that she used alcohol beginning as a teen and into her twenties before she realized that she was using it regularly to cope with life’s stresses. She sought out a therapist and sober support to help her gain sobriety.
“If I can remove barriers for people taking that first difficult step of asking for help, by sharing my personal experiences and struggles, then it will be worth people knowing of my back story and how it informs my approach to caring for people,” Kelly says.
“The most common hurdle is fear that someone will judge you or know you are getting help here at the Family Resource Center,” Kelly says. “This is a judgement-free-zone. Things are confidential here. We are legally bound to protect your privacy. We take that very seriously.”
18, Single, Pregnant
Kelly became a single mom at the age of 18. She remembers being a single parent and feeling judged by others. She remembers holding up the line at the grocery store when paying for food with paper WIC checks. She was a senior in high school, pregnant, and going to the doctor alone—where some of the doctors cast judgment on her.
After graduating high school, Kelly knew she wanted to go to college. Kelly enrolled in evening and weekend classes part-time at a technical college. She worked full-time and cared for her daughter while pursuing her AODA counseling degree.
“Things were not easy all the time,” Kelly remembers. “But I had my end goal in sight. Sometimes taking it hour by hour and day by day.”
Kelly recalls meeting a social worker who helped her and inspired her social work career. She helped me with resources to continue in school. She helped find loans for buying textbooks, gas cards to get to class, day care, healthcare and food assistance. Because of the support she received, she was able to study full-time, work full-time and care for her daughter.
“Thankfully, I had support through programs and friends and family,” she says.
Professional Development
Kelly graduated from Marian College in Fond du Lac with a focus on treating mental health and substance abuse. At the time, she was looking for a new start and new surroundings. She applied for social work positions from Racine to Rhinelander, obtaining a job with The Human Service Center (HSC) in Rhinelander. Three hours away from everything her and her daughter ever knew, she moved and began her social work career as a case manager.
Over time, while employed at HSC, Kelly worked alongside Family Resource Center staff. Her HSC experience serving Forest, Vilas and Oneida Counties brought her closer to Lac du Flambeau, where her husband and family have roots.
Kelly’s professional experience in Lac du Flambeau includes working at Peter Christensen Health Center as a Social Worker while completing her Master’s in Social Work. She completed her internship at the Family Resource Center working with Ken Ninham, and she also spent years working in hospice care and learned a lot about grief, death and family systems. Kelly continues to work as mobile crisis screener for HSC, working with police to determine if hospitalization is needed to keep a person safe when potentially suicidal. She completed her 3000 clinical hours and obtained her Licensed Clinical Social Work credential.
Joining the Family Resource Center in 2019, Kelly now serves as its new Clinical Director. She hopes to expand services by hiring more therapists, starting more therapy groups, and being more involved with community events. Kelly is looking forward to serving the Lac du Flambeau Community in this new role and welcomes open communication with the community.
“Lac du Flambeau is the community where I wanted to raise my family and future generations of our family,” Kelly says. “Everyone walks a different path, and I’m glad my path led to Lac du Flambeau.”
Kelly lives here with her husband, who is a Lac du Flambeau Tribal Member, and their three children. They spend a lot of time watching their children’s basketball games and doing outdoor activities.
Living and working within the community allows Kelly to lead a team of therapists who bring culturally appropriate and trauma-informed care to people. She acknowledges that help is only a short distance away for those in Lac du Flambeau, but taking that first step can seem miles long.
“Don’t be afraid to ask for help,” Kelly says. “The first phone call or visit is the most uncomfortable. That’s why people stay in patterns they’re in now, because it’s comfortable. Change is uncomfortable at first. But slowly it gets easier with the support you get at the Family Resource Center.”
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