July 16 6pm – 8pm | $10 per person
July 23 & 30 6pm – 8pm | $20 per person
August 6 6pm – 8pm | $10 per person
August 13 6pm – 8pm | $10 per person
August 20 6pm – 8pm | $10 per person
August 27 6pm – 8pm | $10 per person
September 3 6pm – 8pm | $20 per person
Passage boys place at local race
The boys of Northwest Passage Riverside ran in the City of Trails Trail Run 5K during St. Croix Falls’ Wannigan Days celebration! The team has been training hard in the mornings under the leadership of our dedicated staff: Josh, Ryan, Reid and Austin.
Our residents: Garrett, Westin, Logan, and Carlos had great attitudes and put forth outstanding effort despite getting rained during the race. The boys started in the back of the pack and still managed to grab race places! Garrett placed 2nd in his age group and 5th in the overall race, Josh placed 2nd in his age group and 6th in the overall race, and as a team the boys received a golden shoe to celebrate that they were the fastest team!
Ashley and I were able to work with our residents Andre and Holden to capture some of the memories. We’ll get the photos uploaded soon.
Sarah Bach, M.S. Weekend Supervisor
I’ll be better when I can get under the water…
Today the girls of Northwest Passage stopped into the In a New Light Gallery (where our kids’ stunning photography is displayed) to prepare for their third week underwater. I asked one of our girls how she was doing. She looked down at her feet and pondered her response for a moment. When she looked up, she made my day and she said, “I’ll be better when I can get under the water.”
Here is a peek at their latest adventures under the surface; enjoy!
“I’ll be better when I can get under the water.”
Passage boys’ latest adventures
The boys at Northwest Passage reviewed the photos from their most recent trip to Crex Meadows Wildlife Area and Shell Lake, and the results are great!
Garrett captures two Lilly pad flowers at Shell Lake.
Cooper discovers a bumble bee collecting nectar and pollen from a flower in order to make honey.
Andre finds a family of Canadian geese swimming at Shell Lake.
Holden sees a deer running through the water at Crex Meadows.
The ladies of Passage dive Under the Surface
A cloudy day turned sunny for the girls of Northwest Passage at McKenzie Lake for their very first outdoor underwater photography expedition! Well done ladies!
A reflection on love and hate
LoveHate
I gave you everything I had,
I risked everything for you to not get killed by my Dad.
I kept it 100 with you,
But all you did was play me for a fool.
You always told me I was your baby girl & you’d love me to the very end,
But now I just want to forget the entire world.
I forgive you,
But I can’t forget…it hurts
I really LoveHate you.
You were such a disgrace always leaving black and blue,
I tried to play it cool,
But I think everyone knew it was you.
In the end, you always said that you were sorry and you’d never do it again,
I believed you,
But it was never to end.
I forgive you,
But I can’t forget…it hurts
I really LoveHate you.
When I needed you to lend a hand,
You’d said to let ya know.
But you weren’t there.
I tried to leave and I couldn’t stand when you wouldn’t let me go.
My name is Monnee and I’m 16 years old, I am here at Northwest Passage to work on many things. This picture reminded me a lot about a past relationship. I picture myself as the leaf and the raindrops as many things that bothered me such as the abuse emotionally, verbally, and physically and all the stress. But as soon as I let the raindrop go, as in as soon as I let him go, I’ll be okay.
Monnee’s reflection is a part of her work at Northwest Passage, a mental health residential treatment center for kids dedicated to restoring hope through innovative mental health services for children and families. LoveHate is just one of the many great strides she is making on her journey of hope and healing. Thank you for sharing Monnee!
The doctors are in… the barn!
Come rain or shine, the kids of Northwest Passage really enjoy their time with our most lovable staff; the equine therapy horses.
Our Passage kids get to engage in all sorts of unique ways to express themselves and work through their feelings; from the arts to physical activity, we strive to give every kid an opportunity to heal. A program favorite is the opportunity to interact with these majestic beauties, two horses and a pony, through our equine assisted psychotherapy lead by Angela Fredrickson, LCSW and Shannon Brice, LCSW. Angela is a certified mental health and equine specialist through the Equine Assisted Growth and Learning Association or EAGALA.
Our talented staff use metaphorical devices and purpose filled activities with the kids and horses, to allow kids to connect with their feelings. To learn more about the work we do with equine therapy check out an article we wrote last year: It’s magical, but it’s not magic.
Safety First! Underwater photography training for the ladies of Northwest Passage
This spring, Northwest Passage sought to bring our underwater photography programming to our girls intensive residential treatment center, Prairieview (formerly Passage III). Thanks to an ambitious Kickstarter campaign and its 84 backers, it is happening right now!
The campaign raised $14,392 to bring this project to life and aims to bring the healing qualities of time spent in the water to the kids as a part of their journey towards better mental health. It also got the attention of some pretty cool people. Celine Cousteau, the documentarian and grandaughter of famed explorer Jacque Cousteau, made reference to the healing power of nature and an appeal for support of our project. And Wallace Nichols, author of Blue Mind, a book that helped inspire the project’s creation, also chimed in with support of our work. It was amazing to see people from around the country contribute to our programming and we can’t wait to see the photos the girls come up with this summer.
Watch as the ladies of Northwest Passage hop into the pool to learn to use their flippers, goggles, and snorkels!
Passage boys head to the zoo
Feelings, turtles, bees, and flowers!
The girls at Prairieview got to go outside and spend some healing time in nature today.
“Mindful Excitement”
This is an experience you want to live to see. Have you ever seen something so exciting, But so mindful? This flower is working, but all you see is stillness. There is much more to this flower than what you are seeing. Be Mindful yourself, and you just may see that this flower has a little MOVE to it.
“Pink Beauty”
My Name is Monnee Ne’Wese Haack and I am here at NWP to work on the things that will make me healthier and happier.
When I needed protection,
You were there.
When I needed love,
You were there.
When I needed an escape.
You were there.
But you didn’t help,
You harmed.
And you didn’t love,
You lied.
And you weren’t an escape,
You were an addiction.
And now I am learning to help myself,
Love myself,
And escape into my own soul.
And I will fight you,
And I will win.
“Minding its own BEEsiness”
I love spring. I love seeing everything turn green, and the snow melt away. I love the blossoms on trees and bushes. Being able to “bee” outside with only a sweatshirt comforts me. It’s warm. It’s nice. Lots of people dislike when the weather begins to warm up because they fear something they believe will hurt them-bugs. When people see bees, their automatic response it to run and hide. People associate bees with being stung. But why? When I see people, I don’t associate them with murder, destruction of the earth, rape, thievery, or adultery. I think when we see a bee, our response should be grateful. They’re pollinating our flowers and crops. Flowers are beautiful. People love flowers, we buy them for our spouses for special occasions, and place them in the middle of our table for décor. Without bees, how would we be able to do so? I was super close to this bee, and it continued minding its own business, because I was not aggravating him in any way, hence, I was not running and trying to escape him. Bees are misunderstood. They are beautiful creatures & should be treated as such.
“Hide & Seek”
I chose to do my reflection on this picture because this turtle was not a happy turtle. In fact, he looks quite grumpy. It’s still a beautiful picture, though. It’s kind of like people. Everyone is going to be in a bad mood sometimes, or sometimes they’ll be sad, frustrated, and maybe even stubborn, but that doesn’t take away their beauty. It also reminds me of paparazzi with celebrities. They’ll go up and invade someone’s personal space and try to use it to their advantage when they’re upset. I’m kind of doing the same thing to this turtle…. Sorry bud.
Prairieview is an intensive residential mental health treatment center in Northwestern, Wisconsin.
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