Presenters:
Laura Montane (Admissions Director, Project PATCH) Laura came to Project PATCH from Southern California where she spent several years developing programs for foster care services. In this capacity, she worked with the teens, foster care staff, educators, and agency administrators. As a Certified Nurtured Heart Approach trainer and a child and family therapist, she has also enjoyed doing therapy and parent training with children, teens, parents, and blended families. At PATCH, Laura is helping families through the application process and offering appropriate referral sources to those that PATCH cannot take at the ranch.
Jim Smith (Family Experience Program Director/Therapist, Project PATCH) As a pastor, Jim walked from cradle to grave with his parishioners -- officiating at weddings, helping families deal with death, aging parents, loss of young children, and counseling families blown apart by divorce. Although he received training as a pastoral counselor, it was during his 11 years of working at the PATCH Youth Ranch as a counselor that Jim obtained his Master’s degree in General Counseling. His own experience growing up with an alcoholic father has empowered Jim to be compassionate to families in pain and turmoil. Jim hopes to alleviate the suffering of others by leading families through the “Family Experience” before a major crisis occurs.
Chuck Hagele (Executive Director, Project PATCH) started working with you in 1988 at a summer camp in Kansas. From that time until now, he has been involved in serving youth in both paid and volunteer positions. Since 2003, he has served a vital role at Project PATCH in various positions including Chaplain, Youth Ranch Administrator, Operations Officer, and currently Executive Director. His background in pastoral work, his studies in Psychology and his MBA from Boise State University have all contributed a great deal to his success in leading Project PATCH.