Abused and neglected children and youth soon will have another way to express themselves, thanks in part to two grants totaling $7,500 from the Investors Bank Foundation and the Roma Bank Community Foundation to Community Treatment Solutions (CTS) of Moorestown. The non-profit organization currently is fundraising to build its own arts and recreational center for the children and youth in its many programs and, in the meantime, will be renting the Kingsway Learning Center facility 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 will begin to use the Kingsway Learning Center after school and on weekends on Jan. 15. Buchwald says CTS, a mission-driven and strengths-based organization, is about halfway toward completing its fundraising goal for building its own center — the Elise Nocella Arts and Recreation Center — thanks in part to the grant from Investors Bank. It will be a safe space where kids can participate in, create, and enjoy the arts, theatre, music, and sports.
CTS applied for the grants from the foundations, which support non-profit organizations that enrich the diverse communities served by Investors Bank; Roma Bank became part of Investors Bank in December 2013.
“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 their staff is doing.”
