January 9, 2008

With Building Families Boutique, Lutheran Family Services returns to its roots

By Jane Simpson, Director of Public Relations

Lutheran Family Services of Nebraska opened the Fremont Area Building Families Boutique at 1420 E. Military Ave. in mid-November. Families with children prenatal to age 5 from communities around the Fremont area are eligible for services.

The Boutique is using the same program model as the LFS Boutique in Council Bluffs, Iowa. The incentive-based program promotes healthy family behaviors through parent education and support, family and community awareness, and early detection and intervention for improved physical and mental health. By participating in these activities, parents earn and redeem points for infant and toddler items at no cost. Meghan Malik, LFS Young Families Initiative program supervisor, said, "This program also provides parent education classes and support groups with free on-site childcare." Malik said there are no income guidelines for families and no fees to participate.

The Boutique is already serving 35 families, and the goal is to serve at least 200 families within a year.

Lutheran Family Services selected the Fremont site for its second Boutique because of strong community support, research analysis and discussions with representatives from other agencies serving families with young children. Dodge County Collaborative Team President Michella Friesen said, "DCCT is excited to see the Building Families Boutique serving the Fremont area. The Boutique will help fill a gap in the community by providing parenting and early education for parents of young children."

LFS has returned home to its roots, as the Fremont Area Building Families Boutique is located on the grounds of the original Fremont orphanage which eventually became LFS. The Fremont orphanage once stood where Good Shepherd Lutheran Church is now located on Military Avenue, and the Boutique now resides in one of the buildings that served as a foster care group home when the orphanage closed in the 1950s.

LFS also provides pregnancy counseling, adoption, mental health and substance abuse services through its Fremont location at 513 North D Street.

Good Shepherd Lutheran Church is providing program and office space for the Boutique as well as assistance with securing Boutique store items and volunteers. Fremont area volunteers have provided more than 1,500 hours of service with the building renovation and acquisition of materials.

Lori Cheshier serves as the Boutique program coordinator and Liz Johnson is the program assistant. They can be reached at 941-0075. The Boutique hours are 8 a.m. 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Cheshier said, "Anyone is welcome to stop by for a tour, and we are happy to provide speaking presentations to area churches and organizations." Cheshier said volunteers are still needed to stock shelves, answer phones, rock babies and assist with a variety of activities. The Boutique shelves continually need to be stocked with new and slightly used items for babies and young children. "Many Fremont area organizations have held or plan to hold baby showers to assist the Boutique, and we are thrilled with the community-wide enthusiasm and effort," commented Cheshier.

At the November Boutique ribbon cutting and open house , LFS President Ruth Henrichs led the Light the Way Campaign Kickoff, a Program and Endowment Campaign to raise funds for the Boutique. The campaign goal is $2 million which includes $500,000 to meet start-up and operating costs during its initial phase and $1.5 million for the endowment fund to provide long-term support. More than $520,000 in gifts and pledges has been raised.

Honorary campaign chairpersons are Rupert and Ruth Dunklau and Sid and Hazel Dillon, and the campaign chairperson is Terry McClain, vice chair of the LFS board of directors. The Rupert Dunklau Foundation provided a lead challenge grant of $172,000. "I hope that my Foundations challenge grant will encourage others to join LFS in providing prevention and early intervention services for our young families," said Rupert Dunklau, president of the foundation.