Green, brown, blue and yellow. Those are the colors Octavia used to draw a picture of the forest. Pressing colored pencils to paper, each stroke she sketched helped ease the flashbacks that sometimes surfaced because of her painful past.
At Krause Children’s Center, our staff and therapists specialize in supporting girls like Octavia using trauma-informed care. Through individual and group therapy sessions, Octavia learned coping skills that helped her express her feelings using creative outlets like drawing and songwriting. “Being creative calms me down and helps me get my feelings out in a positive way,” she said.
Volleyball and basketball—two of the sports Krause offers as therapeutic activities—also helped Octavia learn to cope with past trauma. With each practice she attended and game she played, her self-confidence grew and she found joy in being a source of strength and support for her teammates. We believe that positive change happens when our girls take an active role in their healing process.
Because of your gifts, Upbring can take an innovative approach to healing by offering sports teams, community outings and other therapeutic activities through which our girls reclaim their lives. These experiences help them grow, teach them the power of their voices and show them they have the strength to take hold of a brighter future.