Residential Therapy
Results

Residential Therapy

The Youth We Serve
Our programs are geared for kids who have incredible potential and big dreams, but who may have gotten off track and cannot seem to find their way.  While symptoms vary, underlying issues these youth deal with are often similar. 

• beyond parental control
• rebellious, defiant
• anger
• poor self-esteem
• substance abuse
• choosing the wrong friends
• depression
• poor school performance
• impulsive and hyperactive

Therapeutic Emphasis
While the Meramec Adventure Learning Ranch offers incredible opportunities for fun and adventure, every activity that is conducted, is done with a greater purpose in mind.  Through extensive processing, questioning, participant-led discussions, and the substantial use of metaphors, participants can fully realize some of the lessons that they have learned through the activities and determine how they can implement those lessons into everyday life. 

Therapeutic and staff support during the activities is vital to the success of the program.  We emphasize low participant to staff ratios, and continuous therapeutic support.  Commonality of experience between staff and participants dramatically increase the positive and lasting effects of the program, so in all activities, staff are pushed to challenge themselves, as well.

Completing a program at the Meramec Adventure Learning Ranch is a great accomplishment.  At special times throughout the program, as well as at the end, award ceremonies and completion rituals are conducted to emphasize to the participants the breadth of their accomplishments and integrate those achievements into everyday life.

The Healing Process
The staff at Meramec Adventure Learning Ranch know how difficult it can be to see young people struggle with choices they have made and unfortunate past events.  Together we can provide a way to conquer fears and turn disappointment to hope. Give us a call so we can discuss how our programs can help individuals or groups make positive changes that will last a lifetime.

Residential Therapy Programs
Therapeutic and Wilderness Expeditions
These expeditions are quickly becoming the bread and butter of our program and range in type from backpacking, survival skills, or climbing trips to canoeing or mountain biking trips.  The length, location and type of experiences integrated into the trip also vary based on the objectives and treatment goals of the individuals and group.  The trips take place in many locations both within and outside the state.  Participants are highly involved in the entire process of these trips from planning, goal setting and resourcing, to the actual conduct of the trip with group leadership and responsibilities on the trail.  Like all of our experiences, these expeditions are designed with a therapeutic focus in mind and have proven to be highly effective periods of testing, building, confirming, waking and changing.

Therapeutic Summer Camp Programs
Also known as “School in the Wilderness,” this program brings the best of therapeutic outdoor programs and adventure therapy together with an incredibly exciting summer camp-type experience designed to produce dramatic positive results in at-risk kids.  Every resident of Boys & Girls Town of Missouri along with many foster children in Boys & Girls Town’s care and other therapeutic programs participate in a week-long program filled with hiking, challenge courses, waterfront activities, rappelling, horseback riding, land navigation and canoeing.  Along with these activities, youth are able to participate exciting summer camp activities in a safe structured environment that allow them to make positive decisions and changes in their lives and at the same time, build memories of “camp” that will last a lifetime.    

Day Trips
In a day program at the ranch, the kids are placed in situations where they need to work with a team to communicate, trust, focus, and overcome specific objectives and goals.  Every aspect of the experience from activities, to environment, to trip logistics and length are tailored specifically to the individual and group goals, objectives, and treatment plans.  There certainly is a lot that can be accomplished in a day.

Multi-day Programs and Interventions
Every aspect of the program from length, accommodations, and activities to logistical and therapeutic support is tailored to meet specific goals of the groups and individuals. During multi-day programs, the group is placed in many different types of situations that help develop deeper relationships with peers and staff and range from team initiatives and challenges, to backpacking trips and primitive skills.

Family Programs
A unique opportunity to allow parents and guardians to develop deeper relationships with their kids through unique outdoor activities and shared experiences. There is a lot of value in being in the wilderness with your family. The wilderness stretches people and gets them out of their comfort zone. Conducting these experiences as a family with staff and therapeutic support is a catalyst for developing and strengthening relationships that can take families to whole new levels of cooperation, communication, and cohesiveness.

Results

Lessons Learned
Through the many miles, activities, and campfires conducted at Meramec Adventure Learning Ranch, here are just a few of the lessons that youth participating in the programs have determined for themselves. 

• There are two steps to an apology: repentance and change—change of the heart, and change of action
• Your attitude can completely control the situation, and you can completely control your attitude.  It is a choice, not a circumstance
• Reacting to fear is just like your attitude, it’s able to be overcome and conquered.
• When you stop focusing on your misery and trouble and begin to focus on helping those around you, life gets a lot brighter.
• Service to others gives purpose to life.
• Giving up is not an option, nor should it be.
• Breaking points are an incredible opportunity for dramatic turn-arounds
• Breaking points let us see, more than anything else, what we are made of, force us to accept help from trusted others, teach us to pull ourselves back up, and help us to see where we must go.
• We must make sure we are always connected to a proper anchor/rope in life.  It is also important that we pay attention to the holds we are climbing on.  While the anchor will keep us from falling far if the hold breaks, we find ourselves farther and farther back to where we started, and eventually, may not be able to make it back to the wall at all.
• Influencers have a great opportunity and responsibility to others.  The must make sure they are using their gift for good and not evil.  Those who are influenced by others must learn to become one who influences.
• Compassion for others is impossible to learn until you can relate to their hurt.  We all know hurt in our own lives.  We must just learn to see us in them.
• We wish our parents could see us now.  They would never believe it.  We wish they would do this with us.

What Campers Say

I finally am learning patience.
Mimi

I learned that “I can’t” is just a state of mind… I CAN do anything I want to do. Renee

I faced my fears…and won. 
Chiandra
I learned the true meaning of friendship, how to work together as a group and how to trust others. 
Adrian

I started to really care about others.
Derrick

I can survive in the woods.
Kellin

I learned there is more out there than a big city.
Peyton

I learned to cope with people I dislike and to care for others. 
Cory

I learned to be a kid again. 
Olliver

I am braver than I knew.
Jeanelle

I learned that it’s not “I can’t”, but “I won’t,” and that is a big difference.
Renita

I learned to never give up because in the end it is all worth it. 
Jackson

Poison ivy stinks. 
Macey

Great skills come in actions, not in words. Thank you for helping me become a better young man.  
Damarcus

I learned that sometimes you have to trust things or people. 
Ebony

Sometimes you have to follow the rules to survive.
Crystal

I learned I’m a whole lot tougher then I thought, and yes, I had a lot of fun.
Patrice

I learned that you should put others first and to work together as a team.  I also learned that you should help team members through their problems.
Herman

Lasting Results
Ninety-five percent of participants in the programs offered show increased self confidence/concept, better communication skills, improved coping and conflict management skills, interdependence, and peer relations.

Well over two-thirds of participants in the programs offered showed substantial sustained improvement three to four months later.

Almost all of those initially not wanting to come or participate are glad they participated and believe that the experience was a growing time for them.