Its home lost to fire, a Lake County rehabilitation program for juvenile delinquents and young adults has been put in the position of having to accomplish what its very name suggests: rebound.
Officials with Rebound Inc., a private social service agency in Waukegan, are busy raising money to build a new facility and are eager to get back in the business of helping troubled youths.
Executive director Dan Melyon said the program was effectively shut down Aug. 7 after fire ripped through its home at 520 Bluff Ave., where 10 residents and one staff member were living.
No one was hurt in the blaze, but the ranch-style home, which has been used by Rebound for 15 years, suffered heavy damage and was declared uninhabitable. Police later charged one of the residents, a 17-year-old, with arson. He was convicted and is serving a 10-year prison term.
After the fire, residents were placed in another agency’s facility, turned over to the custody of the state Department of Children and Family Services or allowed to return home because they were near completion of the program, Melyon said.
Eleven part-time staff members and a cook had to be laid off after the fire. The remaining five staff members have been doing follow-up counseling with former clients and working in an after-school program.
While working to revive the program, Rebound staff members have been using a temporary office at Bridge House, a facility in Waukegan operated by the Northern Illinois Council on Alcohol and Substance Abuse.
Melyon said that the focus is on getting Rebound back on track and persuading people to support the program, which boasts a 50 percent success rate in getting young people into the success mode.
“The down side of the whole thing was that someone was charged with arson,” Melyon said. “We have had a hard enough time convincing people of the worth of the program.”
Rebound, formerly known as the Halfway House of Northern Illinois, began about 30 years ago as an alternative to incarceration for young people convicted of minor crimes or first offenses. The idea was to offer these kids a way out through education and job referrals.
During the last several years, Rebound has admitted older people to the program, some as old as 25. All have been referred to the program through the court system and come from all over the state.
Candidates for the program are interviewed and carefully screened. “If we see that a kid is going to benefit from the program, we’ll take him,” Melyon said.
Most of the clients in the program are 18 or younger, and some have been arrested before. But they all show promise of rehabilitation, Melyon said.
“The main focus of our program is to help them continue their education,” Melyon said. “We help them get their GEDs (General Equivalency Diplomas). Then the focus is on employment. A lot of them need to earn money to pay restitution for their crimes. We even work with them to help get them into technical schools, like the College of Lake County.”
Besides getting an education, the clients also get life lessons. “We teach them to do grocery shopping and meal preparation,” Melyon said. “They do their own laundry. They do maintenance work around the facility. And then there is counseling, too. We build up a meaningful relationship with these kids.”
The rules are strict at the 24-hour-a-day residential program.
Participants must do their chores, attend classes and counseling sessions, ask permission to leave and return at designated times.
“We also do regular testing for drugs or alcohol,” Melyon said.
Rebound counselors also follow up with every client for a year. Many participants go on to successful careers.
“I’ve done quite well for myself,” said one graduate, 26, now a manager in an office supply company. “The program has done a lot for me.”
Because he has made a good life for himself, the graduate does not want his name used because he fears it could jeopardize his position and hurt his career. He hopes Rebound can continue so others can benefit.
“I gained a lot from it. I think people need to have an open mind about it,” he said.
Before the fire, the board of directors already had approved plans to build a new $2 million facility for Rebound on two acres along Lewis Avenue.
The new facility will have 41 beds, about half devoted for youngsters ages 13 through 16 and the rest for older clients.
“We are now stepping up our efforts because of necessity,” Melyon said. “We’re trying to recruit volunteers for a committee to get donations and more volunteers.”
In addition to raising money, Melyon said Rebound hopes to get donations of in-kind services to help build the facility.
The organization has an annual budget of $460,000, of which about one-fourth comes from the United Way and the rest from state and federal funding and contributions. It already has about $300,000 to $400,000 for the new building, with major donations from companies such as Abbott Laboratories.
Leo Carvis of Waukegan, a member of the board that oversees Rebound, said that once people realize the benefits of the program, it will be easier to raise funds to keep it going.
“The public needs to be educated about it,” Carvis said. “It does a great job. We’ve become very successful with the program. It makes us feel good because we’re giving them a better opportunity.”
Carvis said board members are working on organizing fundraising efforts. “With this fire, it has really set us back,” Carvis said. “We’re more or less out of business right now, but at the same time, we’re moving forward.”
The burned-out remains of the building are still standing. “We are deliberating now what to do with that building,” Melyon said.
For the time being, Melyon said Rebound has leased an apartment in North Chicago where four clients and a supervisor live.
“There are no programs available for these kids,” Melyon said. “There’s no treatment, nothing for getting a kid while he’s still young enough and getting him back into society. A kid who goes to the juvenile detention center will be with people in gangs.”
Many of these delinquents also can end up in prison once they reach 17. “Then they come out educated in the ways of the criminal,” Melyon said. “I think there’s a large number of kids out there who deserve a second chance. But they need help.”
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Rebound has been sending out letters seeking volunteers, financial support and services. Those interested in helping can call 847-662-0945. Those wishing to make donations can send checks to First Midwest Bank, Rebound Crisis Recovery Fund, Attention: Nicole Anderson, 214 Washington St., Waukegan, Ill. 60085.
