Forum To Focus On Building Healthy Families

By Larissa Lytwyn

Wendy H. Davenson, whose experience includes certification in alcohol and drug counseling, family life education, divorce mediation, grief therapy, and marital and family therapy, will be moderating Parent Connection’s next forum, “Not My Kids, I Am A Good Parent,” Wednesday, January 21, from 7 to 9 pm, at Newtown Middle School.

Despite being the most challenging job people undertake, parenting requires no prerequisite training or degrees, Ms Davenson says. It is a job, she continues, that can be fraught with love, frustration, fear, joy, excitement, and/or pain.

Striving to alleviate the frequent sense of shame parents feel when their children struggle with substance abuse or other problems, “Not My Kids, I Am A Good Parent” encourages a “creative parenting” approach.

While strong families tend to produce resilient children, Ms Davenson says, most families are in need of some assistance coping during periods of myriad pressures, including substance abuse issues, time crunches, and economic conditions.

Among subjects the forum will address is the importance of nurturing partner relationships, communicating more clearly, listening and hearing without making assumptions, and operating the parental role as a teacher, not enabler.

Parents of children of all ages are encouraged to attend.

Parent Connection is a grassroots organization for parents and other concerned citizens designed to increase substance abuse awareness. For more information contact Parent Connection founders Dorrie Carolan at 426-6424 or Donna DeLuca at 425-9280.