Service to pregnant teens celebrates its silver jubilee

"If we help an adolescent have a good, healthy pregnancy; give them parenting skills; help them develop a network so they provide a better life for their child than they themselves have had -- we've done a good job," said executive director Sister MaryAnn LoGiudice, RSM.

However, this year, CMS is experiencing success in a grander fashion: The agency is celebrating its 25th anniversary.

Genesis

In 1971, Catholic Charities decided to "commit themselves to improving services to pregnant women in the 14 counties of the Albany Diocese."

Sister Maureen Joyce, RSM (now executive director of diocesan Catholic Charities) helmed CMS' first maternity residence, where 11 teens received support as they awaited the birth of their children. Sister MaryAnn joined the staff in 1978, becoming director in 1990.

Over the years, CMS has expanded not only its facilities, but also its services. In Albany alone, the Branson Family Development Center began in 1977, assisting pregnant and parenting teens with everything from parenting skills to respite care; and Adoption and Foster Care Services were added in 1981.

"We have 150 certified foster homes," Sister MaryAnn boasted. "These are extremely caring individuals who take in kids through very difficult times."

Children and AIDS

Most significantly, 1987 saw the creation of the Farano Center for Children, also in Albany. More than 300 children with HIV/AIDS and special needs have found a home at the residence, which also provides counseling and therapy. From the Farano Center sprang the Farano Program for Families, serving family members with HIV/AIDS.

"Seeing children born with diseases that either end their life early or give long-term effects for their whole life" is among the most difficult of CMS' challenges, Sister MaryAnn said:

The Heery Center for Young Families, a residential program for teen mothers and children, opened in 1990. CMS also operates a Maternity Center in Albany that provides both residential and non-residential programs for pregnant adolescents. CMS' newest addition, the Crisis Nursery Program, begun in 1994 as an emergency care center for children.

Children with children

In the quarter-century since CMS' inception, adolescent parents have become less and less likely to place their children for adoption. Today, 95 percent of teens in the program parent their own children.

"We see so many adolescents at younger and younger ages becoming pregnant and having babies," Sister MaryAnn added. "Many don't become pregnant because they're tremendously naive about it. They think a baby is someone who's going to love them, or they think it'll keep a boyfriend with them. It's not 'til they go through the experience and have the baby that they find out the truth."

As a result, one of CMS' main goals is education. The Family Life Education Program sends CMS staff into schools, parishes and religious education programs to teach teens about sexuality, HIV/AIDS and communication. Sometimes, adolescent parents accompany the staff to tell their stories.

Throughout Diocese

Today, CMS programs in Albany, Fulton, Herkimer, Montgomery, Otsego, Rensselaer, Schoharie, Warren and Washington counties serve thousands of young parents, children and families each year.

Although the need for such expansion is saddening, Sister MaryAnn emphasized the service CMS provides for its clients: "What has always given me hope is the fact that there are places like this, and a lot of wonderful, caring people there to work with [teens] through those times, until they become contributing members of society. We're attuned to each individual, and we treat them with respect and dignity."

CMS has spent the year celebrating its anniversary in a variety of ways: an Albany symphony concert, a Siena college basketball game and a "Feast of Chefs" dinner. Still planned are an October "Fall Foliage Miniature Golf Classic" and a grand finale celebration in December.

Still more

Another celebration is upcoming, as well: The expansion of Heery Center, which will go from serving six mothers and six infants to ten of each when it moves to the former Blessed Sacrament convent in Albany. An open house is planned after the new residents are settled in.

CMS also plans to add a supervised independent living program to its list of services, Sister MaryAnn said. Participants will be adolescents and their children who are taking a "step before total independence." Living in supervised apartments, the teens will eventually take over the responsibility themselves.

"We're helping people become more self-realized," Sister MaryAnn stated. "Our primary service is working with young women who are pregnant and parents -- and we're successful in the eyes of the parents."

(Community Maternity Services of Albany can be reached at 482-8836.) [[In-content Ad]]