News from the Gateway Center Community Advisory Committee

March, 2003

  ANNUAL SERVICES REPORT-2002
The Gateway Center served a total of 120 clients during calendar year 2002 -- 96 males and 25 females. The average age was 16, and the average length of stay at Gateway was 102.5 days. Of those 120 young people, 73 successfully completed treatment. Nineteen continued in the program into 2003. Twenty-seven Tennessee counties were represented by these clients, with Blount, Knox, and Putnam being the top three. The staff contacted 51former clients who had completed treatment; of those, 45 (88%) had not relapsed.
Twenty-eight youth did not complete the program:

• 11 refused treatment and were willingly signed out by their parent/guardian
• 6 refused to follow rules of the facility and were asked to leave
• 5 were moved to another facility
• 4 failed to return to the Center while off grounds on a pass
• 2 received a medical discharge due to unanticipated health issues

EXPANSION HEARING - A DAY IN COURT
On January 14 I visited the courthouse to watch the court proceedings related to the petition filed by Helen Ross McNabb against the Blount County Planning Commission. I'm not a lawyer, but essentially McNabb felt that the Planning Commission had acted "arbitrarily and capriciously" in denying the building permit for expansion "without comment." McNabb had filed the appropriate documentation that met zoning rules and laws of Blount County, and felt that they had the right to expand and that the Planning Commission had overstepped their authority in denying the permit.
I think I should point out that as members of the Gateway Community Advisory Committee, we have a diversity of opinions about the possibility of expanding Gateway. I think this is an important characteristic of the makeup of this committee. But this day in court was not to decide IF or WHEN expansion could occur, but whether McNabb had the legal RIGHT to expand.
I had never been in court before. I must say I was very impressed with Judge Forgety's handling of the proceedings. Most impressive was the respect he gave to both parties, acknowledging good points and asking clarification when needed.
The Planning Commission argued that there was insufficient space to prevent a nuisance to adjacent land owners, but were unable to provide the judge with any documentation from two meetings of the zoning commission that indicated that McNabb's expansion plans violated any zoning laws.
The Planning Commission then argued that the Gateway Center was a "nuisance," indicated by the 911 calls involving unruly behavior or runaways. Judge Forgety pointed out that "nuisance" is controlled by the dimensional regulations of the zoning board. To expand that to include common law "nuisance" as described would allow the zoning board to trial common law nuisances outside the court system and give them too much power beyond Tennessee Code.
Helen Ross McNabb did take issue with the term "inmates," which was used in court to describe the teens at Gateway. In addition, the term was recently used in a community newsletter opposed to the expansion. The Gateway Center is a treatment center for teens that have made a wrong decision and are addicted to alcohol and/or drugs. While many teens are there by choice through the juvenile justice system, some are there because their families recognized a need for help for their kids.
Judge Forgety's final comments stated that Gateway Center existed before zoning regulations in that area and thus is grandfathered. No court or body has the right to limit legal use of the property. New zoning regulations cannot drive someone out of business. The court ordered that the action of the Planning Commission be reversed and that McNabb be allowed to expand.
While the court has addressed the legal aspect of the expansion, the Community Advisory Committee and the community should continue to provide guidance to the Helen Ross McNabb Center on being a responsible community partner. Since they have already stated their desire to be a good community partner, we, as local residents, have a good chance of making things work to our mutual satisfaction.

-- Joe Szmidt

  STAFF
In our December newsletter, we started a spotlight on staff to help the community get a better idea of the caliber of people who run the Center on a daily basis. We began with Barbara Davis, Alcohol and Drug Adolescent Services Coordinator, and Torrie Dorshug, Program Coordinator. In this issue, we will talk about Leonard and Jennifer. They represent the ends of the age spectrum of Gateway Center staff.

Leonard is a young 72 years of age. Most men of that age would be as far away from teenagers as they could be. Their children are grown, and NOW they can finally have that quiet time on the lake fishing. But not Leonard. He has spent time in the Navy and then five years in the Memphis police force before being called by God to serve in the Salvation Army. He is an ordained minister, retired after 23 years of service. That's great training for the challenging job he has now, which he does with great joy and enthusiasm. He provides a calming, soft yet firm tone that keeps youth in line. You really need to see Leonard in action to appreciate this.

At 24, Jennifer is the youngest staff member. She is a graduate of the University of Tennessee, with a BA degree in Psychology. She has been at Gateway about six months. She supervises activities, facilitates Narcotics Anonymous sessions, mentors, and counsels the clients. One of her key activities is to help with "Daily Positive Goals." These are goals set to help an individual grow in a specified area. Jennifer has a charming personality, as you can see in the photo. She finds it particularly rewarding to help the young girls who tend to confide in her as you would an older sister.

  CLIENTS
To help members of the community get to know and better understand the young people who are clients at Gateway Center, we are sharing their stories with you through this newsletter. Please remember that these youth are 13 to 18 years old, and are NOT convicted of a crime. They are at Gateway because they need help with alcohol and drug abuse problems.
Danesa (not her real name) has that classic Midwest look - fresh face and bright eyes. She looks like many other 16 year-olds, and could have been a cheerleader or prom queen. She did not come to Gateway through the juvenile court system; she is here because she and her mother decided she needed help with her drug and alcohol abuse.
Danesa was an honor student and had a great relationship with her mom, who was single. When she was nine, things changed when her mom remarried. An abusive relationship began with her stepfather and her relationship with her mom deteriorated. When she was 13 her brother and his friends introduced her to marijuana. By 14 she had started drinking alcohol. At 15 she was experimenting with drugs. Her grades suffered terribly, as did her relationship with her mom.
She was introduced to outpatient treatment through counseling at school, but it didn't work for Danesa. The difficulty in outpatient treatment is that you return to the same environment - school, friends, family. The alcohol and drugs helped her relieve and escape the pain of her overall unhappy situation.
The wakeup call came when a friend who also used alcohol and drugs expressed concern about Danesa's substance abuse. She remembered her life before drugs - good grades, good relationship with her mom, just better times all around. Danesa wanted to change, and that's when she and her mom sought out Gateway Center.
At first it was a very difficult experience - she gave up her freedom and her privacy. All her waking time was spent with the same people; eating, taking high school classes, and learning how to live her life without depending on alcohol and drugs. "It feels good to stay clean," Danesa says. She has a vision of a good future. She plans to go to college and study law enforcement. She wants to regain her good relationship with her mom but knows it won't be easy.
"Without Gateway Center and Helen Ross McNabb, I would have felt no one cared about me," she says. "I'd be back on drugs and in juvenile. Being here made me realize people care about me. I can be myself; I don't have to be someone else." Life again holds promise for her.
Danesa and the other young people at Gateway are a far cry from the negative image projected by the term "inmate." They are there to receive help and they are there by choice, much like celebrities who are treated at well-known clinics. We think that if you had a chance to meet Danesa or any of the other youths at one of the open houses, you'd tend to agree.
As always, if you have any comments, questions, or suggestions, please feel free to contact any of us by phone, mail, or through the email address. Here's to Spring!

Best regards,

Joe, Sandy, Marie, David & Gena