Duneland Today - Porter Starke Services

SPRING 2015
BEVERLY SHORES
BURNS HARBOR
CHESTERTON
DUNE ACRES
PORTER
Serving Up Duneland
FAVORITE FOODS OF THE REGION
MAKING A DIFFERENCE
in the Lives of Area Youth
Duneland Exchange Club
CELEBRATING 40 YEARS
Porter-Starke Services
presented by the duneland chamber of commerce
DUNELAND TODAY IS PUBLISHED BY
Duneland Chamber of Commerce
220 Broadway • Chesterton, Indiana 46304
www.dunelandchamber.org
219.926.5513
meet the team
Beth Luncsford / Marketing Director
Beth has over six years of experience in the design and
publishing industry. After obtaining her degree in Graphic
Design, she worked as a graphic artist for Lake Magazine in LaPorte. She later worked at Schofield Media in
Chicago, where she was responsible for the design and
layout of four industry publications. A lifelong resident of
northwest Indiana, Beth currently lives in Michigan City
with her husband, Aaron, and their young son Jacob.
COMMITTEE
Publisher/ Duneland Chamber of Commer
Commerce
Advisory Board/ Maura Durham, Duneland Chamber of
Commerce; Jane Delligatti, Duneland Family YMCA
Managing Editor/ Heather Augustyn, Community Member
Marketing Director/ Beth Luncsford,
Duneland Chamber of Commerce
Heather Augustyn / Managing Editor
Copy Editor/ Janice Custer, Community Member
Layout & Design/ Cassandra Vereb, Graphic Designer
La
P
Photographers/ Kyle Telechan and The Times Media Company
Membership Coordinator/ Ashley Hawkins,
Duneland Chamber of Commerce
Heather Augustyn is a Chesterton native. She has been
a correspondent for the Times of Northwest Indiana
since 2004 and she teaches English composition at
Purdue University North Central and writing at
Chesterton Montessori School. She has published
four books on ska music and lives in Chesterton with
her husband and their two sons, Sid and Frank.
Cassandra Vereb / Graphic Designer
Cassandra, freelance designer, has been designing
Duneland TODAY since 2007. With 14 years of design
experience, she is an accomplished creative thinker,
has a keen eye for detail, a strong technical ability
and a love for all things design. Cassandra is in
love with ideas; building them, cultivating them,
and watching them come to life.
c ntents
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Kyle Telechan / Photographer
Kyle Telechan, photographer, has done freelance work
for the Times of Northwest Indiana since graduating
from Indiana University in 2007 and has over eleven years
of experience in photojournalism. His interest in nature,
architecture, and urban decay drives much of his
non-photojournalistic work. Kyle currently lives in
Portage with his wife Elise.
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ON THE COVER
Ed Kis, General Manager of
the Spa Special
Events Center
LOCATION
The Spa, Porter Indiana
Duneland
Chamber of Commerce
Explore the Difference
SPRING 2015
INSIDE STORY
Renewing the Spa
Serving Up Duneland
4
CURRENTS
FAVORITE FOODS OF THE REGION
MAKING A DIFFERENCE
in the Lives of Area Youth
Duneland Exchange Club
Food Guide
CELEBRATING 40 YEARS
Porter-Starke Services
presented by the duneland chamber of commerce
6
SANDS OF TIME
Porter-Starke Services Celebrates 40 Years 16
HELPING HANDS
Duneland Exchange Club 18
18
MAKING WAVES
Duneland Chamber Events 20
DUNELAND DINING
For Duneland’s Foodies 30
LAUNCH PAD
Welcoming New Members 32
MILESTONES
Celebrating Member Anniversaries 34
DUNELAND TODAY
SPRING 2015
3
PORTER-STARKE SERVICES
Celebrating
40 years
of Mental Health in Porter and Starke County
Pictured (l-r): Lee Grogg, Arthur Malasto, Herman
Schumacher, John Schumacher, and Merle Miller view a
model of the 701 Wall Street building at the groundbreaking
ceremony held October 10, 1974 in Valparaiso, Indiana.
In the early 1950s, Mental Health America issues
a call to asylums across the country to remove and
send in their discarded chains and shackles. On
April 13, 1956 at the McShane Bell Foundry in
Baltimore, Maryland, Mental Health America melts
down the bindings, recasting them into the Mental
Health Bell. Photo courtesy of Mental Health
America. www.mentalhealthamerica.net
Rendering of 701 Wall Street
THIS YEAR, PORTER-STARKE SERVICES CELEBRATES THEIR
40TH ANNIVERSARY. OVER THE COURSE OF THOSE FOUR DECADES,
MENTAL HEALTH TREATMENT HAS ADVANCED TREMENDOUSLY.
“When Porter-Starke Services
first started, there was a heavy
emphasis on inpatient psychiatric
treatment, and although this
crisis service is still very
important to us and individuals
in our community, it is now only
one part of our continuum of
care,” said Rocco Schiralli,
President and CEO of PorterRocco Schiralli,
President and CEO
Starke Services. “Since we opened
40 years ago, research has taught us a great deal about
the human brain and the best practices to deliver care.
We have also worked hard to integrate treatment of
the mind and body. These are just a few examples
of how we continue to evolve,” Schiralli said.
With a mission dedicated to enhancing the quality of
life in our community through prevention, treatment,
education and research, Porter-Starke Services has
transformed lives throughout Northwest Indiana. The
not-for-profit organization continues to provide
outpatient mental health and addiction services for
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DUNELAND TODAY
SPRING 2015
adults, children, and families. Additionally,
partnerships extend their circle of care to the
community to include prevention services, including
screening for depression, anxiety, and substance abuse
at local hospitals and clinics. The organization also
provides addiction treatment to inmates at the Porter
County Jail and counseling at local school
corporations, among many others. Porter-Starke
Services developed these programs in response to
unique needs in the community.
Mental health services have changed as have our
attitudes toward them. “Historically, individuals with
mental health issues weren’t treated very well in our
country, but society has seen this shift for the better
in the past 40 years,” said Elliott Miller, Director of
Marketing & Development. Schiralli added, “It has
improved, but we still have a long way to go. That
applies to any population that is stigmatized, not just
mental health and addiction, but any group that has
been subject to discrimination. And this stigma is
something we continually strive to eliminate.”
“The truth is, one in four people nationwide experience
TIMELINE OF MAJOR MILESTONES
Porter-Starke Services is a compassionate
and dedicated organization, committed
to the health and well-being of our
community. A major impetus for change
began in 1953, when the Mental
Health Association of Porter County was
established, which later provided seed
money to build the first Porter-Starke
Services facility. In 1967, LaPorte-PorterStarke Services was formed by 36
volunteers with a budget of $2,000 to
develop local community partnerships,
secure funding, and ultimately lay the
groundwork for what would later become
Porter-Starke Services. In 1974, start-up
funding was secured. State funds were
granted to Porter-Starke Services to
provide inpatient hospitalization, partial
hospitalization, outpatient, emergency
consultation and education services.
In 1975, Porter-Starke Services opened
with a 14-bed inpatient psychiatric
hospital. The main office was staffed with
just one employee. Space was leased
to provide outpatient services in Knox.
One year later, the Portage office
opened. In 1990, residential services
expanded into Valparaiso and in 1992,
the Valparaiso Campus added an
outpatient facility. To grow and enhance
therapeutic services, Porter-Starke Services
purchased the building at 601 Wall Street.
Services and facilities continued
to expand over the years. By 2013,
Porter-Starke Services served a record
11,000 people.
RECENT AWARDS EARNED BY
PORTER-STARKE SERVICES
2014
Best Practice Honors (American
Psychological Association)
2013
Psychologically Healthy
Workplace Award (Indiana
Psychological Association)
2011
Outstanding Nonprofit
Organization Award (Porter
County Community Foundation)
2010
Special Project Exemplary Award
(Indiana Primary Healthcare
Association)
2010
Community Improvement Award
(Portage Chamber of Commerce)
2008
Special Project Exemplary Award
(Indiana Primary Healthcare
Association)
From left to right:
Aileen Wehren, Vice President of Systems
Administration (standing)
Dr. Anand Popli, Medical Director (standing)
Sandy Carlson, Vice President of Clinical
Services (sitting)
Rocco Schiralli, President/CEO (sitting)
Mary Idstein, Chief Financial Officer (standing)
a mental illness or addiction, but sometimes individuals
don’t feel they have a reason to care unless they are
personally connected to the issue,” said Miller. Schiralli
continues, “We would like to see a community that
truly cares for mental health and is aware of its
importance. Why should mental illness be any different
than diabetes, heart disease or cancer?”
In addition to greater acceptance, Miller says he hopes
mental health services will continue to evolve in the
future. “Our compassionate, dedicated staff of 220
employees, as well as our volunteers and partners,
will continue to serve the community day in and day
out and drive positive change.” Schiralli agrees, “I
envision Porter-Starke Services as the best place to
work and the best place to receive care. That’s the
expectation we set. We’ve invested a great deal of our
time, effort, and resources into achieving these goals
with our employees and clients. We’ve been recognized
for some of these accomplishments, but we always
challenge ourselves to improve. We want to be
innovative – to implement best practices and initiatives
in our industry that the typical healthcare center may
not venture into. It’s the right thing to do because it
will best serve our community. We continue to develop
local partnerships to provide the highest quality
healthcare. Each day, we work to inspire everyone to
advance health, balance and hope.”
DUNELAND TODAY
SPRING 2015
17
Health, balance and hope for everyone.
Anyone in crisis.
Anyone seeking care.
Anyone wanting more.
Our community needs quality
mental health and wellness services.
Porter-Starke Services was created
to fulfill that need in 1975, and we
continue to do so 40 years later.
See how it all began: view a historical
timeline of Porter-Starke Services at
www.porterstarke.org/40years
YEARS 1975
YEARS!
1975··2015
DUNELAND TODAY
SPRING 2015
WWW.PORTERSTARKE.ORG
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