Women in Community Services Inc

WICS has been in operation since 1970, serving the needs of young ladies, considered at risk.  We were an umbrella organization that incorporated many women's organizations: National Council of Negro Women, Church Women United, National Council Catholic Women, National Council Jewish Women, and several other interested groups. We were started by a group of very dedicated women, some are still involved today.  Lucy Nevel was the Director for most of those years. She passed in 2008. When she began this residential program she tangled with the realtor, as he was trying to show her to institutional properties.  She wanted a very nice home for our young ladies.  Lucy did an excellent job and we have a wonderful home which is on the Historical Registry. We attempt to be good stewards in our community. Since then, we have been through many changes. We had a fire in 2009 and were shut dowm for 90 days, we have navigated our way through the changes that Child Welfare Reform brought us and we have been blessed with many wonderful gifts these past few years.  We were given the gift of a landscape makeover from L Magazine.  We also got a stimulus grant that gave us windows and insulation in our beautiful home. We work with girls ranging from 13-18 years old that are struggling with issues of their own behaviors or from their families.  We work closely with each of their home schools to attempt to get them back on track with their educational goals.  We have a tutor on our staff that oversees the girls' study habits.  We have a strong dedication to teaching both social skills and independent living to our residents. When appropriate, we try to get the girls part time employment, to learn the value of a job, then how to manage their income. We have a loyal and dedicated staff that are role models for our girls. We value a mixture of both educational and recreational activites.  We take annual trips to Worlds of Fun, the Omaha Zoo, various other local trips and activities.  We also take many tours of schools, jobsites and community activities.  We are attempting to give them a well rounded experience while they are placed with us.  We also welcome volunteers from the community to assist in teaching many crafts/skills and mentoring oppotunities. They are also being taught the importance of being held accountable for their behaviors and learning to take responsibilty for those actions.  We run on a level system that assists in teaching our young ladies how to exist in structure and the importance of following rules and earning things in their live.  Above all else we provide boundaries, consistency, and lots and lots of love!