Vista Hill - In the News

Women's Council on Mental Health Luncheon

Over 200 guests attended the February 18 Women's Council on Mental Health luncheon with featured speaker Juliet Funt photo who spoke about reducing stress -- keeping some "white space" on the calendar to enjoy family and friends, allowing oneself the opportunity to do just one thing instead of multi-tasking to the nth degree, and understanding the different needs of men and women. All this was delivered with humor as would be expected from the daughter of Allen Funt of Candid Camera fame. photo

Juliet ended her presentation with a clip from that show and told of a true experience when she and her family were on a plane being hijacked to Cuba. A passenger recognized her father and called out, "It's Candid Camera." It wasn't, but all ended safely. photo

National Alliance on Mental Illness - San Diego (NAMI) has named Vista Hill one of the 2008 Inspiration Award winners. Robert Dean, President & CEO of Vista Hill, will accept the honor on November 7 at a dinner celebrating NAMI San Diego's 30th Anniversary. The Inspiration Award celebrates individuals and organizations who have encouraged and supported the cause of mental illness and the destigmatization of mental illness in San Diego County.

Vista Hill Receives Checks from Chula Vista Rotarians

At the August 1st meeting, Bud Wilson of the Chula Vista Rotary Club awarded checks amounting to $10,000 to Vista Hill to establish the George & Eileen Cornell Endowment. The Cornells were former owners of Cornell's Stationary Store which has a long history in Chula Vista . The building has been a landmark on E Street where Stein Education Center now resides. George and Eileen passed away in the 1980s, but they lived in Bonita and were well known to everyone in the area. George was active in the Chula Vista Rotary, serving as club president and district governor. Bud teamed up with building co-owners Chuck and Janet Peter on this generous donation. Robert Dean, Vista Hill CEO, graciously accepted the checks.

Jim Biddle, fellow Rotarian and owner of Securities Center, Inc., was instrumental in the development of this fund which is now at $11,500.
Interest on the Cornell Endowment will benefit Stein Education Center and thus the Cornells "continue to do their work for mankind."

Pictured left to right -
Brad Wilson, Jim Biddle, Robert Dean and Bud Wilson.

Women's Council on Mental Health Annual Luncheon
Dr. Thomas Perls was the featured speaker at Vista Hill's Women's Council on Mental Health luncheon on Tuesday, February 26; and he was also the honored guest the evening before at the Patron Reception at the home of Gayle and Phil Tauber.

Dr. Perls provided interesting information from his long-term genetic and social study of centenarians and gave the luncheon crowd of nearly 300 a great deal to think about. As one of a handful of the world's experts studying these older patients, Dr. Perls' book “Living to 100: Lessons in Living to Your Maximum Potential at Any Age” makes sense and provides good direction and ideas for all of us.

Dr. Perls has an excellent memory, and he recalled a variety of stories about our wonderful, older citizens: humorous, interesting, enlightening.

Dr. Perls also delighted the WCMH membership by joining the group at the Sapphire level. Thank you, Dr. Perls! And thanks, too, to the many supporters of the Women's Council on Mental Health and of Vista Hill. We also send kudos to Chair Marjie Atwood, Ph.D.; Charlotte Neilsen, Honorary Chair, and the WCMH event committee. You are all very much appreciated!

NFAR Race for Autism San Diego - Balboa Park. The Stein Education Center Walkers arrived on Saturday, March 29th for a pleasant walk in the park. Click here for photos. The race supported the National Foundation for Autism Research. For more information: www.racefor autism.org

Crystal Darkness Program Aired December 12th at 7:00 PM. This 30 minute film will be shown simultaneously on the following television stations or cable providers: KUSI, KPBS, COX 4, CTN, Time-Warner Cable, and KOCT.

Crystal Darkness is a gripping documentary portraying the real outcomes of methamphetamine abuse. Viewers will be able to see examples of everyday people who have gotten into the downward spiral of drug dependency and encouraging stories about successful recovery. The program is the result of a partnership between the San Diego Prevention Coalition, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the San Diego County District Attorney's Office, and more than 70 other business, treatment, community and government organizations. ParentCare Family Recovery Center hosted a group viewing that drew more than 35 adults and teens.

San Diego Women's Foundation Grant. In 2007, ParentCare was awarded $35,000 from the San Diego Women's Foundation for the “Mother Hubbard's Cupboard” project to supply families with nutritious emergency food.

The ParentCare “Mother Hubbard's Cupboard” project is designed to improve the accessibility and nutritional quality of emergency food supplies, as well as increase knowledge of healthy meal preparation, for low-income women who are recovering from chemical dependency. Beneficiaries will also include their young children, and other family members. The “Cupboard” will be located on-site at Vista Hill's ParentCare Family Recovery Center , where young mothers struggle each day to overcome drug and alcohol abuse and create a better life for their children. The project will include easy access to high quality emergency food supplies for these fragile families - - many of whom have gotten off the street, and on the road to recovery, but are still living “on the brink”. Education about “low-cost-but-nutritional” meal preparation will also be a component of this project, which will impact over 150 women and children annually.

The San Diego Women's Foundation (SDWF) was established in 2000. SDWF's mission is to educate and inspire women to engage in significant and sustainable philanthropy in the San Diego region. Vista Hill was recognized at the SDWF Annual Grants Celebration on June 5 at the Salk Institute where members and guests heard about this year's recipients as well as the ongoing work of previous grantees.

Vista Hill is grateful for the leadership and generosity of the SDWF, in particular, for addressing problems with vulnerable populations that many choose to ignore. Most of the young women who turn to ParentCare for help did not have a mom or grandmother or big sister to rely upon…many thanks to SDWF for sending “Mother Hubbard” to the rescue!

Corrective Reading Program Implemented at Stein Education Center. SRA Corrective Reading Strategies is a new program being implemented at the Stein Education Center . Students participating in the program attend structured Reading Groups on a daily basis. The program is designed to teach problem readers effective reading skills to recognize and comprehend printed materials. Click here for student pictures.

The SRA Corrective Reading Strategies program is presented through direct instruction and is designed to effectively communicate with students grouped according to their reading level. Each lesson is based on a cumulative development of reading skills which are presented during a lesson, and then implemented through a variety of tasks. The students attending Reading Groups practice reading orally through word lists, sentences, and passages and work to improve their ability to recognize and decode unknown words.

Reading comprehension is also an important factor of the program, whereas the students are taught to remember specific details of a passage when reading orally. Comprehension activities teach the student that what is read is to be understood.

ll students who participate in the SRA Corrective Reading Strategies program are making tremendous strides to improve their reading ability.

Multi-sensory Room at Stein Education Center - Individuals with autism often have difficulty with sensory integration or processing. That is, the ability to take in information through the senses (especially vision, sound, touch, and movement) filtering it, processing it, and then responding appropriately to the stimulus. In “normal” neurological systems, an individual is able unconsciously filter out and ignore the excess stimulus. The multi-sensory room at the Stein Education Center provides a controlled atmosphere for our autistic students to be gently exposed to sensory stimuli. There is a large bubble lamp, soft music, an oversized bean bag chair, and a small ball pool where special students can quietly decompress and practice filtering sensory stimuli.

“Troubled Teens Find Support at Vista Hill” featured article in the Del Mar Times July 14 publication focuses on the Bridges™ Service Center 's Intensive Outpatient Program. [Click here for the full article]

"National University Names Vista Hill CEO Robert Dean as Distinguished Alumni." [Click here for the full article]