2022 Paraklesis INC Annual Report
Paraklesis INC is a 501c3 charitable organization founded in 1990 to provide quality faith-based counseling services to all who are ill or suffering. Forest Lakes Counseling, also founded in 1990 as the first legal outreach of Paraklesis and has provided office-based counseling for couples and families for over 30 years. In 2010, Peace Ranch became the second legal outreach of Paraklesis offering a new experiential therapy arm to the organization specifically envisioned to help children and families in crisis.
Forest Lakes Counseling Annual Report
In 2022 most of us in the US finally started moving away from the constant shifting and dancing to manage the world with covid. But it still left its mark on the way we do business and work, and the mental health field was no exception. On any given week, I will see 20-40% of my clients virtually on a special application made for health care virtual meetings. Prior to the pandemic it was 0% with an occasional phone session. The reasons are varied: It’s too hard to get childcare, it takes too much time to travel to the appointment, they don’t live close enough to come in person, or perhaps they’re afraid to leave the house now. Many of the clients I see now I have never met in person. This has advantages and disadvantages. The main advantage is that people can receive help even if it would be impractical to come in and see me. The main disadvantage is that there is part of the human component of relationship that is missing when you are not actually in the same space together. Covid not only impacts the way therapy is practiced but has dramatically increased the strain on families and subsequent seeking of professional help. Covid related pressures (including how masking was handled) are still a component for many of the people I see. Hopefully as work and school routines become normal and regular, these pressures will ease, although there are other cultural issues on the rise that are undermining the stability of family life. This has been a big transitional year for Jackie and I as we moved off the Peace Ranch property. The move necessitated many changes, both temporary and permanent, and it seemed prudent to limit the number of clients I saw during the second half of the year so I could reasonably attend to an increase in responsibilities. Because of this, the numbers I report next are lower than they would have been in a more typical year.
Below is an overview of the number of clients Forest Lakes Counseling has seen and a description of the different numbers I will be sharing:
Number of people seen when counted once for each time they come in. This for example would be 2 for a couple who came in for one session.
Number of unique clients. This is the number of different clients that came in for the year regardless of how many times they came in.
Number of therapy hours. 100% of the sessions this year were one-hour sessions—so this is the total number of sessions as well. In the past I have seen some people for 1.5 hours and occasionally for a half hour.
Average income per hour session. This is the income for the year from counseling divided by the number of therapy hours. I am going to include previous years for comparison and perspective.
The office situation continues to be adequate, and the location easily accessible—both from a location in the city standpoint and from a handicapped accessibility standpoint. FLC signed a new lease along with the other two therapists for an additional 2 years at the 954 Business Park Dr. location where I have been for a little over 5 years now. I do not foresee any big changes in 2023, though if there are unexpected challenges, we will do what we can to shift to meet them.
Paul Kaschel, DPhil
LL Psychologist
“When the going gets tough, the tough get going.”
Spring
With war abroad, national unrest, and difficult times in our community, our team has joined the battle to reclaim lives devastated by abuse, neglect, war, and now systemic trauma caused by the pandemic. We increased service personnel, added new programming and partnerships to broaden our capacity and ability to help. In January we hit the ground running in partnership with the Traverse Bay Children’s Advocacy Center.
“He who sows sparingly will reap sparingly, but he who sows generously will reap generously.”
Summer
The tragedy that took place Monday, May 24th in Uvalde, Texas has had global impact. Nineteen children, and two adults were senselessly gunned down by an 18 year old (who was also a casualty) the day before this picture was taken. It was after Tuesday that age old wisdom struck me recently. Tuesday, a group of young families, children, parents, grandparents and teachers came to Peace Ranch to celebrate and support sensory learning in young kids with development delays. Why? Because sowing healthy seeds in their lives now will produce a significant harvest in their future. Many of the parents shared special things about what happened for them. At Peace Ranch they felt safe, judgement free, relaxed, and were able to enjoy engaging with their children. Some kids had never been with other kids. Others had never been on grass. The staff was deeply touched seeing their student’s vitality, exploring, smiling, and playing- like other kids.
No one imagines tragedy like what happened on May 24th and hindsight IS 2020—apparently no one responded to the cries of this troubled teen, who was a little boy once. It reminded me that no matter what, we must keep sowing seeds of hope and healing, especially planting in young lives AND we need to support families so kids can grow healthy and strong. By doing so we invest in their lives, planting good seed so we can reap a good harvest in all our futures.
Fall: Bringing in the Harvest
I guess I’m an old farmer at heart. I remember when our kids were young, bringing in bushels of fruit and vegetables for freezing and canning to preserve them for the coming winter. Harvest is work, the result of good seed sown plus watering and tending to promote healthy growth toward maturity. This process is at work in our clients, our lives as a team, and in Peace Ranch as an organization. So much harvesting is happening in the garden of lives.
Raising six children on one salary was challenging but, by the grace of God we never lacked for anything. Our needs were met as we diligently preserved what we had. Harvest is Hope, the assurance that we will have what we need to get us through the dark, cold, winter.
Winter
“When we moved to Hoosier Valley in 2003 there was a beautiful empty field, with a gorgeous hilled forest behind- not a building in site. We came to build a family farm, an endeavor we pursued for our family. We never dreamed that the seed we planted would mature to include so many others. We have loved living in this healing place and have had the privilege of working with many wonderful people.”
This year I write with such nostalgia as I consider our journey to this landmark year in our history. The 17.5- Acre ranch campus, much of which had been privately owned, now belongs in its entirety to Paraklesis dba Peace Ranch. A silent campaign launched in January by our Board of Directors raised nearly enough to retire the debt. Many thanks to the generosity of several anonymous donors, Bill & Susie Janis, and the estate of Peg & Erwin Sporte.
On August 1st, we (Paul & Jackie) moved off the ranch and our new resident Caretaker, Cortney Moguel with her family successfully moved in to assume responsibility for the care of horses, facility, and volunteer coordination. This transition has positioned Peace Ranch securely to continue to serve our community into the future. Of course, we (Paul and Jackie) will continue to serve the ranch as long as we are able.
“Our Vision grew beyond our family to include all who are looking for peace. We are privileged to see that seed coming to fruition and acknowledge the imprint of God who has caused the increase.” ~cont. Paul K.
Life challenges brought us to discover the life changing impact of equine assisted psychotherapy. What began as the “crazy horse thing” is accepted broadly as an effective therapeutic intervention for people struggling with complex trauma. Looking forward, our focus is Growth, sharing what we’ve learned, training younger, community minded people and passing the torch to ensure this important work continues long after we are gone. Peace Ranch must grow to meet the tremendous need for those whose lives have been ravaged by abuse, neglect, violence, and war.
2022 Staff Highlights & New Developments
NEW Staff: Cortney Moguel, US Veteran, and graduate Asbury University Equine Studies with concentration in Equine Therapy officially became Peace Ranch full time Resident Caretaker on September 1, 2022. She and her family moved into the Ranch house July 31. In her first 4 months Cortney has taken the reins of facility management, horse care, communication & training volunteers AND has organized a number of volunteer projects, represented the ranch in the community, and is working with the clinical staff toward reaching out to Veterans through her personal connections statewide.
Clinical Director Jan Stump completed a multi-year endeavor toward certification as a Natural Lifemanship Certified Practitioner. NLC-P s are uniquely trained to walk with clients on their path offering support and science-based guidance. The Natural Lifemanship equine assisted therapy training parallels Dr. Bruce Perry’s Neuro-Sequential Model. Her education was funded in part by a grant from the Biederman Foundation.
Staff Transition: Founders Paul & Jackie Kaschel moved off the ranch to make room for the new Resident Caretaker. Jackie will continue to serve as Executive Director, program oversite and clinical/educational services.
Horses received new Hayhuts this year funded by the Veterans Coallition and built by Allen Greenman. The Hayhuts keep the hay off the ground and under cover reducing waste from hay sitting on the ground and wear on hay nets.
Peace Ranch Service Hour Pie
2022 Service Stats
Therapy & Education Hours: 1392
Internship Specific Hours: 500
Total Therapy & Education: 1892
Number of People Served: 986
Number of Unique Clients: 252
Volunteerism at Peace — Total Volunteer Hours: 1391!!
Volunteers helped this year with horse care, facility maintenance and in programs like the summer Leadership & Resilience program for kids.
The 2022 Good Sporte” Award is an annual award to be given at our year end gathering of volunteers to recognize the volunteer that most exemplifies the Spirit of Volunteerism demonstrated by Erwin P. Sporte.
The 2022 Good Sporte” Award went to Allen Greenman, our first Veteran volunteer, for his exemplary service, leadership, and consistent positive attitude.
Major Mile Stones
Paraklesis dba Peace Ranch Property Debt Retired! The 17.5- Acre ranch campus now belongs in its entirety to Peace Ranch. A silent campaign launched in January by our Board of Directors raised enough to retire the entire debt. Many thanks to our donors including Bill & Susie Janis, the estate of Peg & Erwin Sporte, and those who wish to remain anonymous. A dedication of the house and property was held November 6, 2022, Mr. Sporte’s Centennial Birthday.
LAND Donation: 5 Acres Property adjoining the summer pasture behind the covered arena were donated to Peace Ranch for development of a NEW Rustic Retreat Program by our generous friend and neighbor Paul Biederman. Year ONE property development goals include clearing/cleaning up the acreage which has a lot of down deadwoods and construction of 4 rustic cabins.
On Deck 2023
National Eagala Training: Peace Ranch will host the Equine Assisted Growth & Learning Association’s Fundamentals of Eagala Training May 31- June 4th. Participants may come from any of 40 countries worldwide.
Peace Ranch and Traverse Bay Children’s Advocacy Center Partnership to serve trauma children who are victims of assault has been fully funded for a second year by the Clark Family Foundation.
Peace Ranch will host Brickways residents, for the first year since the pandemic, in a customized program to help disabled adults improve relationship skills and confidence.
Professional Consultation Services will be offered this year by our Executive and Clinical Directors for folks seeking to start an equine therapy program in their area. Together Jackie & Jan will provide clinical, equine, and business (non-profit/for profit) direction tailored to clients as a fee-based service.
Rustic Retreat Phase 1 Property Development, Phase 2 in Program Planning. The Rustic Retreat concept appears as early as 2016 our Strategic Plan. Small, rustic cabins were envisioned to facilitate short term stays on the ranch for small groups of men, women, and couples with a special focus on Veterans. An Anonymous Donation will enable an immediate start on the new property/program development.
It is important to note that our successes this year, as every year, are the result of hundreds of people giving their time, talent, and resources to make a difference in the life of others. We couldn’t do it without you and, as always, it is an honor to serve with you.
Jacquelyn Kaschel,
Executive Director