At Center For Family Services, staff are recognized as the most valuable and greatest resource. The top workplace team at Center For Family Services consists of highly experienced experts in a variety of fields. Trusted staff are changemakers and thought leaders and are often the leading voice in how services are designed to best serve those in need. 

The Expert Angle offers an outlet for highly talented staff to share their knowledge with you. This forum is a place where content experts share information on topics that most closely resonate with the work they do. The Expert Angle is a collection of blog entries where our staff can explore the various entities of Center For Family Services’ mission and programs from the point of view of an expert in that role. The blog is a platform to help communities, individuals, and other social service professionals to learn and grow. 

A Diamond in the Rough- The Living Proof Recovery Center and The Power of Support

Posted on: | By: Jeannine Dumont Living Proof Recovery Center Staff
Sign Up for Our Newsletter Living Proof Recovery Centers has been a supportive place for many individuals since opening in 2002. It’s peer-led and volunteer driven environment can be found in Camden County, and most recently, on Rowan College of South Jersey’s campus in Gloucester County. Recovery support efforts here are ever expanding and the services offered are designed for those considering, entering or already in recovery.As a staff member for over eight years I have had the opportunity to see the impact of this program’s efforts. I love seeing people begin to open up, change and…
Blog Tags: Recovery, Peer led, supportive relationships, substance use, substance addiction, community support

A Recovery Pathway That Worked for Me – Building a Better Foundation

Posted on: | By: Vanessa Puk Living Proof Recovery Center Staff
Sign Up for Our Newsletter There are many pathways an individual can take to help them in their recovery process. These pathways are not only about getting free of the craving, but it is about healing your mind, body, and spirit. My pathway to recovery hasn’t always been traditional, but I found what works me.I realized I needed to find my personal pathway to recovery in May 2016. I was sick of feeling unfulfilled in my life and tired of making poor choices.  I had been arrested for a DUI and while sitting in the cold jail I had the chance to reflect on where my life was going and…
Blog Tags: Recovery, Pathway to Recovery, Certified Peer Specialist, Living Proof Recovery Center, Personalized Process, Addiction

Appreciation as Motivation

Posted on: | By: Richard Stagliano CEO
Sign Up for Our Newsletter Passion, commitment, kindness, professionalism, quality, and respect are just a few of the many words that come to mind when I think of our team of now 1500+ staff. Every organization thinks that their employees are the greatest, but at Center For Family Services, we not only think of our staff as head and shoulders above the rest, but as a vital piece of our success.Ensuring that staff are treated as our most valuable resource is ingrained in our company culture and is even written within our goals and values as an agency. Without our team, our over 100 year…
Blog Tags: topworkplace, employee, staff, success, professionalism, trainings

Parenting - Giving Children Choices. Part III

Posted on: | By: Richard Lange, Ph.D., LPC, LCSW
Sign Up for Our Newsletter Giving Children Choices Part Three When I was raising my two boys, I was learning about giving choices.  One winter's day, we took a walk in Washington Crossing State Park.  It was here I decided to practice my new skill. "OK, guys, we can take this trail or that trail. What's your choice?""Do you want to rest now, or shall we keep going?" "I have a snack; do you want an orange or an apple?"   Sometimes they would ask me to do something. "Can we go explore that area?"  "Can we sit on the stone wall?" I…
Blog Tags: The Expert Angle, Parenting, New Jersey, South Jersey

Parenting - Giving Children Choices. Part II

Posted on: | By: Richard Lange, Ph.D., LPC, LCSW
Sign Up for Our Newsletter In the last blog post, I talked about how giving children choices gives them some sense of power and control in their lives. Remember, children all day long are being told what to do. By providing children small choices in their lives, they feel that they have some say or some ability to make decisions independently. In this part, we continue to discuss two different “choices” methods, the “forced choice” and the “alternative choice.”Some children will refuse to make a choice.  For example, you said to your child, “do you want to have milk or orange…
Blog Tags: The Expert Angle, Parenting, New Jersey, South Jersey, social services, center for family services

Parenting - Giving Children Choices. Part I

Posted on: | By: Richard Lange, Ph.D., LPC, LCSW
Image the daily life of a child.   "Elijah, you need to get up for school now.” “Elijah, you need to brush your teeth now!” “Elijah, stop yelling at your sister and get down here.” “Elijah, do you have your bookbag?  Where is your homework?” “Elijah, you need to hurry, or you will miss the bus."   When Elijah gets to school, it starts again.   "No running on the playground!”   “Put your pencils away now.” “No talking in the hallway."   From the time a child gets up to when they are ready for bed, children are being told what to do. So, it's no wonder some…
Blog Tags: mental health, The Expert Angle, New Jersey, wellness, Parenting, Children, Families

Mental Health Wellness - Tips & Activities to Stay Grounded. Part IV

Posted on: | By: Richard Lange, Ph.D., LPC, LCSW
Sign Up for Our Newsletter "You are what you eat." You might have heard this phrase at some time in your life.   It comes from a French phrase from 1826, "Dis-moi ce que tu manges, je te dirai ce que tu es." [Tell me what you eat, and I will tell you what you are].  Slightly different, but you get the point. "You are what you eat" originated with an idea in Europe in 1800 that "the food one eats a bearing on one's state of mind and health." Well, people in 1800 were correct.  There is more and more evidence that food can have an impact on your mental health.According…
Blog Tags: mental health, The Expert Angle, New Jersey, wellness, healthy eating, mind and body

Mental Health Wellness; Getting outside

Posted on: | By: Richard Lange, Ph.D., LPC, LCSW
If you are looking for a quick mental health boost, researchers recommend getting outside.   They have shown that just being outside can help people feel more mentally healthy. It feels that science has caught up with what people already know: how many times have you, when you felt upset, just wanted to “get some fresh air.” Well, it turns out that it works. Researchers have shown that being outside can reduce muscle tension and blood pressure, boosts endorphin levels and dopamine production, and makes us more creative.  Plus, it does not take much time for this to happen.…
Blog Tags: mental health, The Expert Angle, Getting Outside, New Jersey, wellness

Volunteer Service: A Pathway to Your Purpose

Posted on: | By: Marissa Cantu Director of Community Relations Development & Public Relations
There’s an intrinsic desire in all of us to be part of something bigger than ourselves. One of the best ways to do that is to be a volunteer. Growing up, service was seamlessly integrated into my life by my parents. Being of service to others and involved in my community, are core values that I’m lucky were passed down on both sides of my family.We all have a civic responsibility to take care of the world around us. Because of the systems in place, and the unequal distribution of and access to resources, not everyone has the available time, financial ability, or energy to volunteer in a…
Blog Tags: The Expert Angle, New Jersey, Volunteer, Service, AmeriCorps, Community Service, Corporate Volunteerism, Corporate Social Responsibility

Mental Health Wellness - Tips & Activities to Stay Grounded. Part III

Posted on: | By: Richard Lange, Ph.D., LPC, LCSW
There once was a psychiatrist in New York who worked with patients who were depressed.  While he provided the usual treatment, he would add something out of the ordinary. He would ask all his patients to do a mitzvah.   A mitzvah is a good deed, but not just any good deed. A mitzvah is a good deed where you are not expected to get anything back. You don’t expect an acknowledgment: it doesn’t give you points; you don’t get a reward; and you might not even get a thank you. You just do it because it’s the right thing to do.   After assigning a mitzvah, the psychiatrist noticed…
Blog Tags: mental health, wellness, expert angle, mental health awareness month, well being, professional care, center for family services, social services
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