Home > Conference Calendar > 14th National Conference on Child Abuse and Neglect: Gateways to Prevention > Plenary Sessions, Mini-Plenary Sessions, and Awards > Parents Anonymous Inc. Awards

Parents Anonymous Inc. Awards

Parents Anonymous^® Inc. Jolly K. Award

Parents Anonymous^® Inc. is proud to present the 2003 Jolly K. Award to Sue Smith from Parents Anonymous^® of St. Louis, Missouri. The Jolly K. Award recognizes a Parents Anonymous^® Parent Leader who exemplifies the courage, tenacity, and strong parent leadership initially demonstrated by Jolly K., the founding parent of Parents Anonymous^® Inc.

Sue Smith, Parent Leader Parents Anonymous of St. Louis

Sue Smith, a dedicated Parents Anonymous^® Parent Leader, has been involved with Parents Anonymous^® of St. Louis, Missouri, for seven years. In addition to assuming a wide range of important leadership roles in the community, Ms. Smith has been active in the Edna McConnell Clark Foundation's Community Partnerships for Protecting Children Initiative in St. Louis. In this capacity, she chaired several Community Partnership committees, which focused on child abuse and neglect prevention. Ms. Smith has served as the Co-Chair of the St. Louis Neighborhood Network Council, which subsequently created the Sue Smith Family Support Award, an award that has been given to individuals who demonstrate strength-based practice with families. For three years, Ms. Smith worked as a Chronic Neglect Family Support Worker at the Family Resource Center in St. Louis, making weekly home visits to families. Her passion for family strengthening initiatives has led to many more families being better served through Parents Anonymous^® Programs. Her valuable contributions as a Parent Leader from Parents Anonymous^® serve as a model to Parent Leaders throughout the country who want to make a positive difference for their own families as well as for others in their communities.

Parents Anonymous^® Inc. Juanita Chavez Award

Parents Anonymous^® Inc. is proud to present the 2003 Juanita Chavez Award to Wendy Haas from Parents Anonymous^® of Columbus, Ohio. The Juanita Chavez Award recognizes a Parents Anonymous^® staff member or volunteer for his or her work in partnering with parents to create and support meaningful parent leadership to ensure better outcomes for children and families.

Wendy Haas, Parents Anonymous Children's Group of Columbus, OH

Wendy Haas, a vitally important and energetic volunteer for the Parents Anonymous^® Children's Group in Columbus, Ohio, reaches out to parents attending the Parents Anonymous^® Adult Group and ensures they become active partners in her work in the Children's Group. Both groups meet at the same time at the Holy Rosary Barbara Bonner Shelter for the Homeless, a place where children find a safe and nurturing environment. Ms. Haas is particularly dedicated to promoting Parent Leadership and to building positive relationships between the children and their parents in order to prevent child abuse and neglect. She devotes much time to teaching skills and behaviors that will help parents in their parenting role. Ms. Haas demonstrates creative ways to promote positive emotional and social growth and development for pre-school and school-aged children. As a Children's Group Volunteer, she works closely with the Parents Anonymous Program staff and the Parent Group Leader to ensure that the needs of the entire family are met. The support, supervision, and nurturing that Ms. Haas provides to the children in the Parents Anonymous^® Children's Group enables them to take a break from daily life stresses, learn better coping strategies, and develop positive relationships with their parents. Because she knows the importance of partnering with parents in Shared Leadership, Ms. Haas also provides a source of support as parents grow and make changes in their lives.

Updated on February 24, 2010