Community Treatment Solutions Commences Fundraiser for New Center

Nonprofit organization Community Treatments Solutions (CTS) has received a grant from the Investors Bank Foundation and the Roma Bank Community Foundation, respectively, totaling $7,500, as announced Tuesday, Jan. 26. The organization is fundraising to build an arts and recreational center for abused and neglected children and youth while renting the Kingsway Learning Center in Moorestown for the same purpose.

“The reality is most of the kids who come to us have a long history of abuse and trauma, and they come to us as an alternative to psychiatric help,” said Susan Buchwald, president and CEO of CTS. “Kids have to go at their own pace, and that’s why this arts and recreation center is so important. It’s an alternative way for them to express their history without having to re-say it.”

CTS began using the Kingsway Learning Center after school and weekends on Friday, Jan. 15. According to Buchwald, CTS is a mission-driven and strengths-based organization that is about halfway toward completing its fundraising goal for building its own center. The center, intended to be named the Elise Nocella Arts and Recreation Center, will be a safe space for children to participate in and enjoy art, theater, music and sports.

“You don’t realize the severity of the situation and the effect an organization is having until you speak to those involved,” said Carmine Pannullo, a senior market manager for Investors Bank. “You have to be a special kind of person to deal with the children and youth who come to Community Treatment Solutions. I truly commend what [the CTS] staff is doing.”

The organization works with New Jersey children and youths, ages five to 21, who might have been involved in human trafficking, display signs of post-traumatic stress disorder and have otherwise been abused or traumatized throughout their lives. CTS offers community-based group homes and therapeutic treatment homes. Most stay with the program for about a year before returning home, being adopted or transitioning to independent living, the organization reported. The goal, according to Buchwald, is permanency. The nonprofit also offers intensive clinical services, family therapy, outpatient mental health services and specialty services.

“We operate out of heart, and we’re absolutely sure our kids are getting better. We’re not here for anything else,” said Buchwald. “It’s all about the kids and their families getting better.”

“It is difficult just to hear some of the stories of the children at Community Treatment Solutions,” said Pedro Figueroa, Investors Bank assistant vice president and Mount Laurel branch manager. “That is why I am honored to help the organization in its mission to get these children and youth on the right path.”

Further information is available through the Community Treatments Solutions website.