It is the day after Christmas. I hope yours was full of warmth, kindness, and gentle companionship. I hope you were surrounded by peace and grace. I wasn’t. My youngest granddaughter is learning to walk and her mission in life is to grab the Christmas tree and pull it down on herself. Her parents are in a constant state of vigilance, both for her protection and to avoid my ire at the tree’s destruction. Her 2-year-old brother, taking cues from mom and dad, kept grabbing her and pulling her away from the tree—to her great and loud chagrin.…
Services for Kids
Most children who come to Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch have not had a good relationship with school. Their behavioral and psychiatric problems have often resulted in them being labeled as "one of those kids.” If they are in a chaotic home, the school has likely not received much parental cooperation. They are often bullied or the bully. Simply, school has not been the happy place of learning adults hope it is.…
Now, to shake things up… and no, I’m not going to share a new green bean casserole recipe, I want to tell you about the children at Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch. They are not always grateful.…
Across the United States, over 70% of the people who work in the human services and healthcare fields of trauma-informed care are themselves survivors of trauma. These are folks with incredible insight into what it takes for a child to heal. They know, personally, the internal courage and re-learning that is mustered to overcome the damage done through trauma.…
I love writing about the children and staff at Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch. They are all remarkable people. It’s important for you to know that none of those stories are possible unless we uphold the very highest standards of care. The kids and people who work here deserve no less.…
I was just introduced to a Christian folk song by Jason Gray. It’s called… “Jesus Loves You (And I’m Trying). The title hooked me.…
When Gideon came to Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch, he was, like many children, quiet and withdrawn. It isn’t that way with all children when they arrive, but many spend their early days with us observing and acclimating. It is a new place with new expectations, new people, new food, new guidelines. Gideon was watching and simply figuring things out.…
"The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. 'The Lord is my portion,' says my soul, therefore I will hope in him."…
My mother-in-law recently passed away. I will miss her. She just had her 95th birthday days before her death, and she was part of my life for over half of that time. She led a hard, yet incredibly grateful life.…
How many of you remember your childhood chores with fondness? I certainly don't! Cleaning my room, taking out the trash, vacuuming, or emptying the dishwasher took time away from the fun things I would have much rather been doing.…
By the time kids get to treatment at Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch, they have likely been to many therapists, psychiatrists, and psychologists. They are fluent in everything related to therapy. They've learned about cognitive behavior modification, how to identify and challenge their thoughts, and many different coping skills — and none of it has been particularly helpful. In treatment, they receive more in-depth learning and have people around them 24 hours a day to coach them on how to use the things they've learned.…
According to Dr. Meryl Willert, Ranch children fall into one of three categories when it comes to religion and spirituality. How we work with them depends on where they are in that spiritual journey.…
It is very common for a child at Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch to ask staff to brush, braid, or “fix” their hair. Sometimes, a child who can never sit still will quietly pass 30 minutes or more while having their hair brushed. When a child is at Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch, we follow strict boundaries about appropriate touch. A staff person may side-hug a child, high-five, tuck them in, address minor “owies,” put a comforting hand on a shoulder or hand, brush their hair. This is a place of care and healing. It is also a professional environment for treatment.…
The science backs up what we see every day at the Ranch, that wellness and physical activity are essential to mental health and healing. "We know that physical activity is healthy and that lack of physical activity is a risk factor for depression and anxiety," said Dr. Wayne Martinsen, Psychiatrist and Medical Director at Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch.…
We talk a lot about trauma-informed care here at the Ranch—it is a philosophy of care we take very seriously in both our treatment and education environments. But it can be a difficult concept to understand—both for new Ranch employees and for people outside the school and treatment world.…
Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch has been helping children and families succeed in the name of Christ since 1952. Literally, thousands of really good people have spent all or part of their careers at the Ranch. Whether as teachers or treatment specialists, maintenance people or nurses, Chaplains or accountants, all have witnessed the immense work it takes for the precious children in our care to overcome trauma. It also takes a lot of knowledge about mental health and brain development and the impact of trauma.…
Erinn Dosch is a great communicator. She writes grants and manages website and social media activity at Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch. She is a voracious reader, funny and smart, and a “word collector.” You know, she loves a turn of phrase or clever pun. She’s a really good Rancher.…
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. —2 Corinthians 1:3-4 NIV…
“Get over it!” We hear that a lot. We say it a lot. I say it to myself when someone cuts me off in traffic, or my arms are too short for me to read the instructions I’m holding. Sometimes, we just need to move on.…
I’ve told you before, working at Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch is hard work. Good work, but hard. It is hard to hear the kids’ stories of trauma, abuse, and mental illness. It is hard to be distrusted by these hurting kids and hard to earn their trust. That’s why it is so important that our folks always support each other, cheer each other on, and share successes.…
Most of the children who come to Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch have not been treated with respect. Most are trauma survivors. The very definition of a trauma survivor is someone who has suffered because of an absence of power. Perhaps it was an abuser, or poverty, or drug addiction, or death, but something in their lives exercised extreme power over them. That disparity led to them being abused, neglected, injured, and suffering. They are deeply hurt.…
Finding every single way to help children understand themselves, heal from their experiences, and become their best selves all depends on communicating in a way they can grasp. Since every child starts in a different place, professionals at Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch use many different tools and approaches.…
Karen, a woman I work with, uses a term I love—“God wink.” I don’t know for sure how she would define it, but when she says it, I imagine God with a smile, nodding just a little and tipping a hat. A gesture of “I see you. Well done.”…
On August 3rd, I celebrated my eighth Ranchiversary! I came to Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch in 2015 after spending over 22 years at another human service organization. Before that I worked in the corporate world and I’ve also done some university teaching in communications and business.…
I am frequently amazed by the people who choose to work at Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch. They are a compassionate, courageous bunch. One such person is Jan. Jan came to the Ranch looking for a very part-time experience to augment her corporate banking job. She had plenty of work in her “real” job but was looking to find a way to impact kids and families in a more hands-on way. We are very grateful she found us.…