McHenry County Turning Point

McHENRY – In its first public statement since word that Family Service & Community Mental Health Center will close, its board president said Monday the agency will work to provide alternative resources for its client base.

A confidential memo sent Friday to Family Service employees stated the final terms of Family Service’s agreement to transfer services to North Central Behavioral Health Systems “were not met/finalized.”

Family Service will no longer provide behavioral health services in McHenry County beyond June 30, according to the memo.

In a statement sent to the Northwest Herald on Monday, Family Service Board President Judy Kettmann said the board has “put in hundreds of hours of volunteer efforts to try to assure the survivability of Family Service which began in 1959.”

“All our efforts have gone and are going to trying to make sure the more than 2,000 clients we serve continue to get services,” Kettman’s statement said. “We have been actively supported by the [McHenry County] Mental Health Board and members of the community in these efforts.”

The Mental Health Board, which is one of several funding mechanisms for Family Service, said Monday it is compiling an official news release with “projections for how to handle newest developments.” That information should be made available this morning.

“As you can imagine, there will be many meetings in the upcoming days to assess the situation and choices available to minimize impact on the most vulnerable individuals being served through Family Service,” Mental Health Board spokeswoman Barbara Iehl wrote in an email to the Northwest Herald.

However, there is no special board meeting of Family Service’s board of directors planned for today.

North Central was slated to take over Family Service on May 1. In the face of increased financial difficulty, Family Service began talks of a financial partnering with North Central as the only way to avoid closing its doors.

The employee memos state only that “unforeseen business circumstances now make clear that it will be unable to [operate a Family Service Division of North Central Behavior Health Systems].”