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Community Partnership Saves Pediatric Clinic for Children with Disabilities

Goodwill of Southern Indiana Honored by Goodwill Industries International

June 26, 2007

Rockville, MD — After 50 years of caring for the health needs of children with disabilities, Bridgepointe Services and Goodwill of Southern Indiana (Clarksville) couldn’t simply stop the program due to financial difficulties. Instead, it formed a partnership with two local organizations, which not only saved, but also strengthened, its Pediatric Family Support Program. The Bridgepointe Goodwill is honored this year with the Stewardship Excellence Award from Goodwill Industries International.

When Bridgepointe Services and Goodwill of Southern Indiana could no longer afford to compete in the field of medical services, the Goodwill’s CEO and Board of Directors met with every medical entity in the metro area to explore a solution to continue health services for children with disabilities. Southern Indiana Rehabilitation Hospital and Heuser Hearing Institute both stepped forward to help create that solution. They moved into the Bridgepointe Goodwill’s building and began offering services within two months, creating a seamless transition for families and staff.

“For more than a century, Goodwill Industries has shown innovation in solving local problems,” says George W. Kessinger, President and CEO of Goodwill Industries International. “This can-do spirit is exemplified by the Clarksville Goodwill. Instead of giving up on a worthy program, they forged community partnerships to keep it alive and thriving.”

The Pediatric Family Support Program offers physical, occupational and speech therapy, pediatric psychological services, diagnostics for autism, family support services for autism, audiological services and career services for the parents, when the time is right.

“Bridgepointe Goodwill went from a $500,000 loss to break even in one year because of our foresight in seeking a community-wide solution instead of just discontinuing a program,” says Caren Marshall, CEO of Bridgepointe Services and Goodwill of Southern Indiana. “Because the Southern Indiana Rehabilitation Hospital is part of a larger metro area health system, they are able to call on resources and economies of scale that make the project feasible. Goodwill’s fundraising expertise is now used to support other expenses of the program.”

Now that the program is stable, next steps include the construction of a new building and adding an Autism Clinic and Resource Center.

The purpose of the Stewardship Excellence Award is to recognize, reward and share best practices for carrying out the fifth strategy of the Goodwill Industries 21st Century Initiative: Develop and optimize the use of Goodwill’s resources.