Counseling

Counseling...the Heart of the Matter

Since Auburn Youth Resources' inception in 1973, the core concept of the services we deliver to the community has been built around a clinical counseling program. The program is based on a systemic view, acknowledging that individuals are part of systems and that the healthier the individuals are in the system, the healthier the whole will be. We work not only with family systems but also with community systems (such as schools and the Department of Social and Health Services) to assist families in becoming connected to area resources in positive ways. AYR's clinical staff consists of trained professional therapists, case management specialists, and support staff.

Supervision in the program is provided by a clinical director and two staff supervisors, who are American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT) approved supervisors.

Over the course of a year, AYR's counseling staff provides thousands of hours of service to the community in the form of individual, couple, group, and family counseling sessions in our offices in Auburn and Enumclaw or in clients' homes. A clinical service for young children, known as play therapy, is also available to children struggling with behavior and learning disorders.  In 2005, AYR added a clinical therapist who is fluent in Spanish to increase our services to Hispanic clients.

The clinical staff also provides services through outreach programs in area schools that are designed to address issues youth face in school, at home, and in social settings, such as drug and alcohol use, anger management, and teen pregnancy prevention. Our outreach program in Federal Way has proved effective in reducing the number of homeless youth on the streets by directing them to AYR's shelter or other age and gender-specific programs in the area.

The services provided to families by AYR's case management staff are diverse and often relate to life essentials such as food, clothing, and shelter. Through collaborative relationships with other nonprofit agencies, area churches, and community based service providers, AYR's case managers link families to the services they need and can access. This seamless delivery of services is an effective way to help families in crisis gain control of their lives and begin the process of building a stable home environment.

Counselors help individuals and families work through past and present experiences, which have created fear, anger, depression, or hopelessness so that they may enjoy a fuller and more rewarding life. Counselors also increase safety for some families by increasing the families' ability to cope with past and present life situations.

AYR's vision has always focused on the needs of low-income families and children. With the support of city, county, state, and federal programs and grants; a sliding-scale fee structure; United Way of King County; and our supporters, AYR has provided help for those who lack adequate support in the community.