RED BANK–Highlighting the importance of its residential program, Collier Youth Services served as the host to its first “Hearts of Hope” breakfast event.
“The mission of Collier Youth Services is to provide at-risk youth a chance to grow toward their potential in an environment that promotes belonging, dignity and hope,” said Sister Debbie Drago, the organization’s executive director. “The mission is based on a philosophy of deep respect for the inherent worth of each individual and the belief in the capacity for personal change that is consistent with the ministry of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd.”
Proceeds from the breakfast at the Molly Pitcher Inn on Feb. 7 will support Collier’s residential program at the Collier Group Home in Red Bank and Collier House in Keyport. The program serves teenage girls who cannot live at home because of abuse, neglect and trauma, as well as young women ages 18-21 who have “aged out” of the foster care system, according to a prepared statement from the organization.
“Both homes provide young women who have been faced with pretty significant adversity and trauma the support and opportunity to write the future of their own life’s stories that is full of promise and hope,” Drago said. “That is why we are calling the breakfast ‘Hearts of Hope.’ All of our young people have hearts that have been broken by challenging life experiences, but given the love and support of the Collier Group Homes their hearts are gradually transformed into whole and hopeful hearts that can only be limited by a lack of imagination.”
A former resident at Collier’s group home and house, Maria, who chose not to give her full name, spoke about her experiences with the organization.
“When I first arrived at the Collier group home I was scared. I was scared of the idea that I would finally have a place to call home. It was a new experience to attend a local high school, but through these scary experiences they were able to help me create structure and a routine for myself,” she said.
Maria said that due to being used to being on her own structure, rules and school were foreign concepts to her. She left the early program due to being pregnant and lived independently, working hard to make ends meet.
Ultimately due to the stressors of being a young parent, Maria said she had to leave her signifcant other so that the environment would be safer for her son.
“I realized I needed to get additional support, even if it meant being temporarily away from my son. I called the Collier House and without hesitation they accepted me into the program and was supportive of my role as a mother,” Maria said. “When I entered the Collier House I was motivated to learn how to truly be independent through life skills, instructions, to process my trauma in therapy and to create a strategic plan to become successful.”
Maria said today she is living independently and has a full-time job, and is also a dispatcher. She attends Brookdale Community College to earn her degree in criminal justice and hopes to one day become a detective.
The keynote speaker for breakfast event was Diane Turton, founder and president of Diane Turton Realty, who spoke about the challenges she overcame and her passion for real estate. She has 18 locations in Monmouth and Ocean counties, including Colts Neck, Holmdel, Rumson and West Long Branch.
“Diane is a local woman who has created a successful enterprise in our own community. We wanted to highlight a member of our own local community. I don’t think there is a person in Monmouth or Ocean County who has not heard of Diane Turton. Diane was very pleased to present at Collier’s first Hearts of Hope breakfast and we [were] thrilled,” Drago said.
Turton said that her grandmother and father were both involved in real estate and she knew at a young age that she wanted to be a Realtor.
“You really have to love what you do. I love rejection. First of all, I never wanted a nine-to-five job. I didn’t want to punch in a clock; I had one nine-to-five job and I quit in one day. I wanted to be free, I wanted to be able to make whatever I wanted to make, and you have to have a lot of empathy in this business, but more importantly you have to absolutely love what you do,” Turton said.
One of seven children, Turton said when she was 20 years old her father committed suicide and that after his death she had to step in to help raise her younger siblings.
“I just think that it’s really important for all [the] women in Collier to come out and don’t think that you can’t do something,” Turton said. “Five people rejected me and would not hire me when I was young to do real estate they said, ‘That this is a man’s job there is no way you are going to make it, you have to sit in and answer this phone from nine-to-five.’ I said, ‘No, I am not going to do that I’m going to work the streets.'”
Turton said that if someone says no, don’t listen to them.
“Don’t think that because something tragic happened to you that can’t come out OK. … Just don’t take no for an answer, because you can do anything you want to do,” Turton said.
When Collier Group Home first opened in 1973, it was the first residence of its kind for teenage girls in Central New Jersey. Decades later, when the State of New Jersey approached Collier about operating a transitional home for young women discharged from foster care, Collier opened Collier House in 2007, according to a prepared statement.
Today, Collier operates the only residential program in New Jersey tailored for young women that is certified in the Sanctuary Model. This structure empowers teenage girls and young women to develop tools for identifying past trauma and creating positive changes for life success, according to the statement.
Drago said that Collier Youth Services programs also include Collier High School, Collier Middle School, the Collier Residential Programs and Kateri Day Camp.
Sponsors for the event included New Jersey Natural Gas, Woodhaven Lumber, A+ Letter Service, Margaret Mary Dalton, the Lindemann Family, Mary Portwood, Beacon Planning and Consulting and the Bray Family.
For more information about Collier Youth Services, visit www.collieryouthservicesgh.ss8.sharpschool.com/program_overview/philosophy.
Contact Vashti Harris at vharris@newspapermediagroup.com.
