Newtown Youth & Family Services (NYFS) invited the community to tour its newly renovated facility at 15 Berkshire Road during an open house on May 15, from 8:30 to 10:30 am.For more information about Newtown Youth & Family Services and the upcoming programs available, visit newtownyouthandfamilyservices.com or call 203-270-4335.

Food and refreshments were served for guests, who were given the opportunity to speak with knowledgeable staff members about all the recent updates and learn about what the organization offers.

The licensed nonprofit mental health clinic and youth services bureau has been helping the greater Newtown area for more than 30 years and specializes in a variety of services for all ages, including support groups, substance abuse treatment services, prevention initiatives, couple and family counseling, and psychiatric services.

NYFS's team of professionals include more than a dozen clinicians and an advanced practice registered nurse, all of whom are dedicated to providing the necessary support and resources for children and families to help them reach their highest potential.

The practice had previously extended to 13 Berkshire Road, but recently consolidated to the 15 Berkshire Road location.

Despite moving all the services to one location, NYFS actually expanded by acquiring the remaining rooms of the 15 Berkshire Road building.

Erica Salas, project manager at NYFS, said they closed for a week to do the bulk of the renovations last December, before Christmas.

During that time, a number of cosmetic upgrades were done to make the environment as comfortable and aesthetically pleasing as possible.

"All the floors have been redone and all the offices have been repainted," Ms Salas said.

Themed artwork has even been incorporated in all the hallways to depict the changing seasons.

Everything from the lobby with its new underwater mural for the children's area to the clinician's offices to the bathrooms was revamped with changes to best serve their 325-patient clientele.

NYFS Assistant Clinical Director Jessica Ward said, "We are most excited about being able to offer more space to our clients. It was pretty cramped before, so now we are able to spread out and do more programs. It's more comfortable for people."

With the new areas of the building being incorporated, rooms like the Program Room were able to move into a bigger space.

The new, larger Program Room allows for different activities to utilize the space - like the SELFIE (Self Exploration to Learn Feelings, Individuality, and Empowerment) Program for high school girls that meets every Thursday. The community can even rent the room out for private events.

Ms Salas said that one of NYFS's next programs coming up this summer is Safety Town 2017. The week long program for children entering kindergarten will teach important safety information just before school starts. It will educate children on traffic, bus, bicycle, fire, and water safety, as well as awareness of poisons and of strangers. There are three opportunities this summer to join Safety Town with week one from July 17 to 21, week two from July 24 to 28, and week three from July 31 to August 4.

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