Personified: Shelter provides safe haven, love, hope

Shelter provides safe haven, love, hope

Emily Milholen Reynolds Northwest Arkansas Children's Shelter Board President Day job: Senior Counsel, Walmart US Legal
Emily Milholen Reynolds Northwest Arkansas Children's Shelter Board President Day job: Senior Counsel, Walmart US Legal

Tell us about your organization:

• Mission: The mission of the Northwest Arkansas Children's Shelter is to provide a safe haven, high-quality care and hope for the future to children who have been abandoned, abused or neglected.

Starlight Gala

Who: Northwest Arkansas Children’s Shelter

What: Granger Smith performance, dinner, auction

When: 6 p.m. March 7

Where: John Q. Hammons Center in Rogers

Tickets: $250

Attire: Cocktail

Information: (479) 795-2417 or nwacs.org

• Services provided: The Northwest Arkansas Children's Shelter is a 24-hour emergency residential center, with trauma-trained staff who provide support and love for children ages birth through 17. Since 1993, we have helped more than 11,000 children from throughout the state of Arkansas. We are committed to providing high-quality care to each child -- beyond the basics of clothing, toiletries and nutritious meals. All children receive counseling from licensed therapists, on-site medical care, dental and vision care and more. The shelter's on-site school also provides an individualized learning program for each child.

• Service area: The shelter serves children from throughout the state of Arkansas. In 2019, we served children from 21 different Arkansas counties.

• Average number of people served annually: Approximately 500 children.

How is your organization's mission unique? At the shelter, we focus on breaking the cycle of abuse and neglect. We believe the way to do that is by providing each child hope for their future. To do that, we provide more than just food to eat and a safe place to sleep. Through education, extracurricular experiences, life skills training, and most importantly, love, we want to help these children enjoy the simple pleasures of childhood and show them the path to a brighter tomorrow.

Why do you volunteer for a nonprofit organization? Do you have a personal connection to the mission? If so, what is it? People are always surprised to learn that Benton and Washington counties have two of the highest numbers of reported cases of child abuse annually. Last year, in Northwest Arkansas alone, there were 5,291 reported cases of abuse and neglect. These children are the future, and I ... want to serve these vulnerable children and show them a path out of the cycle of abuse.

What have you learned on the job that you didn't expect? So many typical childhood milestones have been stripped from these children because of the abuse and neglect they have suffered. Seeing the joy on the face of a 15-year-old girl when she finally learns to ride a bike, or the pride on the face of a 16-year-old boy when he finally achieves a fourth-grade reading level are just indescribable moments.

What challenges face your organization? Since 1998, our on-site school has served children who are faced with unique educational needs due to the trauma they have experienced. What is now known as trauma-informed education is something we have been practicing for more than 20 years. Over the past couple of years, we have thought about how we can expand to serve even more children who need help in the area of education beyond just their temporary stay at the shelter. We are so excited to bring the first trauma-informed public charter school to Arkansas with Hope Academy, opening in August 2020.

Are there volunteer opportunities in your organization? What are they? Yes! Our kids love our volunteers. There are opportunities to serve individually at the shelter and also as corporate groups. Volunteers are so important to our mission of showing these children what hope looks like.

NAN Profiles on 02/16/2020

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