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Author: Chuck Yarborough, The Plain Dealer

Natalie Leek-Nelson doesn’t look at the world in a normal way. Artists, teachers and gifts from God are like that, and she’s been called all three.

The first two are easily documented: A Cleveland Institute of Art sheepskin in fine arts covers the initial description, and coursework in education at Baldwin Wallace means there’s no need for a snopes.com sniff test on the second.

But that third descriptor, arguably the most important when it comes to the woman who is president and chief executive officer of the crisis nursery Providence House, may be the most undeniable.

Why? Because it comes from Sister Hope Greener, who founded Providence House 31 years ago, when a mother in need came knocking on her door. The location of that door — still part of the Providence House complex — isn’t common knowledge, for safety reasons.

“Natalie is God’s providence,” said Sister Greener, who now lives in the Congregation of St. Joseph community in Rocky River.

“She graduated from our [St. Joseph] Academy, and when I was on the board of the academy many moons ago, she was also on the staff,” Sister Greener said.

When the previous director at Providence House died of cancer, Leek-Nelson, who’d been serving as a consultant under an interim director, took over as boss.

It’s sort of what you expect from a woman who lives by the credo “Never let the opportunity in a good crisis pass you by.” That’s why now, under her stewardship, Providence House has morphed from a place that took care of kids to a place that puts families first.

“In our first 20 years of operation of our 31 . . . we were a safe haven for babies to come,” said Leek-Nelson, 44, who lives in Rocky River with her husband, Steve, and their two boys, Connor and Corey. “We weren’t doing a lot of the care we do with kids now, and we were doing NONE of the family program.”

That family program is Leek-Nelson’s pet project, and it has not been easy. When the program, which requires parental involvement, began a a decade ago, social-service agencies pretty much pooh-poohed the idea. The agencies believed that parents in such straits that would require them to “dump” their kids, as some saw it, rarely were capable of or willing to change.

Those agencies have been proven wrong, more often than not.

“We’re reunifying 95 percent of our families, and family compliance is 90 [percent] to 95 percent,” Leek-Nelson said.

Part of that is a desire to break the chain of abuse and abandonment that often leads to foster care. Third- and fourth-generation parents who were raised in the system are coming to Providence House with one goal:

“They’re coming to us and saying, ‘Not MY baby. No more. I’m done,’ ” Leek-Nelson said. “They don’t need a handout; they need a hand-up.”

A business mind in nonprofit world

“Natalie is a visionary,” said Gareth Vaughan, chairman of Providence House’s board of trustees and president of the Albert M. Higley Co.

“She has taken the agency from a smaller, boutique agency to one that is nationally recognized. She’s brought a sense of running it like a business, not from a standpoint of making money, but organizationally.”

There’s a reason for that: Leek-Nelson spent time teaching computer arts, a job she loved, then segued into the business world, working with software developers.

Her epiphany came on a red-eye flight from a business trip in San Francisco with some colleagues. Their words showed a lack of concern for the client, as long as the product was flashy, she said.

Worse, none of what she was doing gave her the emotional lift she got from seeing the light go on over a struggling student’s head. For a while, she stayed with the company as a consultant, but she began to focus on the nonprofit sector, fortuitously for Providence House.

The Providence House board of trustees was frustrated, primarily because members, who by profession are businesspeople, didn’t speak the language of nonprofits any more than the nonprofit workers spoke the language of business. But Leek-Nelson’s diverse background made her fluent in both.

Sister Greener may be Leek-Nelson’s biggest fan.

“[Leek-Nelson] is incredibly caring of the children,” the 84-year-old nun said. “She wants to put the family back together again. To her, it’s not a job or a position; it’s a ministry.”

Leek-Nelson has as much respect and love for Sister Greener as the nun does for the protege who is taking her beloved Providence House to new levels.

“Here’s this visionary who 31 years ago wanted to do what nobody in this community knew how to do for these kids. God forbid that I’m the one who stops that from happening. She’ll haunt me!” Leek-Nelson said with a laugh of her mentor.

Leek-Nelson’s business acumen pays off in other ways. She is, as Sister Greener said and several members of her staff confirmed, committed to the children and families who find themselves on the doorstep of Providence House. But her strength may be in her ability to recognize — and navigate — the roadblocks that often derail so many “do-gooders.”

Foremost among those obstacles was the “system” itself.

“When I started here 11 years ago, we didn’t really work with the parent,” Leek-Nelson said. “We thought that the safety net was out there. What we quickly realized is that the safety net is full of holes, and it’s really hard to navigate.

“I have master’s-level social workers who have years of experience who run into walls all the time,” she said. “So imagine a mom with no resources, no transportation, no money, maybe with literacy issues, trying to navigate that same system.

“And we wonder why our families have multigenerational cycles of poverty and violence and underemployment,” she said, shaking her head.

But it’s a trend that Providence House is trying hard to reverse.

Only about 30 percent of the children who come to Providence House a first time return for additional stays. Nationally, the average is closer to 80 percent or 90 percent, Leek-Nelson said.

“But that’s because they get 48 or 72 hours with the kids,” she said. “We get 30 to 60 to 90 days, so we can really dig in.”

Serving as many kids as the program can

Who are the people whose children wind up in Providence House? It’s not who you might think.

“A lot of people think these are poor, black kids from the inner city,” Leek-Nelson said. “They’re not. . . . Sure, there’s a concentration in the near East and near West sides, but we also have kids from Shaker [Heights] and from West Park. West Park is our No. 1 referral community.”

The need for such a place is as obvious as it is sad. Statistically, Cuyahoga County ranks tops in the state with about 21,000 calls annually to report abuse and neglect of children — and Ohio is No. 8 nationwide.

“What you see reported is about 50 percent of what’s really going on,” Leek-Nelson said. “You’re talking about 40,000 incidents [annually in Cuyahoga County alone] where kids are in jeopardy. We want to prevent that from happening.”

The 200 or so volunteers and staff members, such as facilities manager Bobby Richards, call Leek-Nelson “a superwoman. Somehow, she knows everything.” Still, the sheer volume of need dictates that it’s got to be more than a one-woman show.

But Leek-Nelson is bent on turning the challenge into an opportunity, right now by spearheading a $2 million, 7,000-square-foot expansion.

Part of the reason for the new structure are new state rules that more than halved the number of children Providence House could serve at any time, from 26 to 12. The other part, though, is that along with restoring those original capacity numbers — by adding bathrooms, square footage and the like — the expansion will allow Providence House to extend the age range to newborn to 10 years old; it’s currently newborn to 6. Construction on the expansion began in April, and it should be open by Thanksgiving.

It’s not been easy in these times of economic woes to operate a nonprofit. But Leek-Nelson remains committed . . . and unwavering.

“We have to raise about $1.8 million a year, from the community, from companies, from foundations [for the regular budget],” she said. “We don’t always raise what we need, and then we have to cut back.

“Then we get this $2 million challenge on top of the $1.8 million,” she said. “It would’ve been easy to say, ‘We’re just going to operate with 12 kids.’ But we said, ‘No, that’s not what we need to do. We need to be serving as many kids as we can.’ “

Here’s why:

Leek-Nelson tells the story — without tearing up — of an 18-year-old who visited the facility. The teen, who gave his name only as “Bobby,” had to persuade the staff to let him into Providence House, whose location is kept quiet to protect its young charges.

“I lived here when I was 4,” Bobby told the wary staffers. He had his fifth birthday in Providence House, complete with a party and a makeshift cake: a Hostess Ho Ho with a candle in it. The celebration came with hugs and kisses. And the Providence House specialty:

“It was the first time in my life I ever heard somebody say, ‘I love you,’ ” Bobby said.

Leek-Nelson’s own parents divorced when she was 3, but they remained respectful toward each other. It couldn’t have been easy; butcher Bob Leek was a recovering alcoholic, and some of his family “cut him off” during some of the more challenging years of his life.

“But he had seven years of sobriety before we lost him,” Leek-Nelson said. “They wrote him off and never got to enjoy those seven years with this amazing guy.”

It’s a lesson that benefits the families who come to Providence House. Natalie Leek-Nelson will never write anyone off.

Just ask the future Bobbys.

Author: Jacque Jovic, FOX 8 Cleveland

CLEVELAND, Ohio – More than 200 volunteers will pitch in on Friday, July 20 to build a playground for the children of Providence House, an organization which offers emergency shelter and care to children at risk for abuse and neglect.

This new playground will provide a safe place to play for more than 200 at-risk children. The leaders at Providence House say children today spend less time playing outside than any previous generation in part because only 1-in-5 children live within walking distance of a park or playground. They say this lack of play not only affects physical health but also negative impacts children’s social and cognitive skills.

Volulnteers will start the day at 8:30 a.m. and the project is expected to be complete by 3:00 p.m. For more information on Providence House, visit provhouse.org.

Author: Lee Chilcote, Freshwater Cleveland

Providence House, the first crisis nursery in Ohio and one of only 70 similar facilities in the U.S., recently broke ground on a $2 million, three-phase project in Ohio City that will allow the nonprofit agency to better serve Northeast Ohio families in crisis.

“We have a waiting list that is 20 to 30 kids long right now,” explains Natalie Leek-Nelson, Executive Director of Providence House, which is expanding its current location at W. 32nd Street and Lorain Avenue. “Phase I of the expansion will allow us to have 250 kids per year in our crisis nursery, and it will also increase the ages of the kids so that we can take older siblings.”

Providence House provides short-term housing for kids who are unsafe in their homes because they’re at risk of abuse, neglect or generally unsafe conditions. The agency is unique because it offers intensive therapy to help families stay together. More than 95 percent of families whose children end up at Providence House are eventually reunified. The facility also offers housing to kids whose parents are unable to care for them (for instance, because they’ve suddenly gotten sick).

“Parents don’t want to give up their kids, so things often escalate until they’re out of control,” says Leek-Nelson. “Providence House is an alternative to the emergency foster system. We let families know it’s okay to get help.”

When asked why Providence House’s work is important, Leek-Nelson cites a statistic that 75 percent of high school dropouts are abused kids. “Is it the school system or something at home that keeps them from succeeding?” she asks.

Providence House has already raised about 75 percent of the funds that are needed to complete Phase I of its expansion plans. “It’s been a big challenge, but the community has really stepped up,” says Leek-Nelson. “We have more than 300 individuals, foundations and businesses that have donated.”

Source: Natalie Leek-Nelson
Writer: Lee Chilcote

Author: Regina Brett, The Plain Dealer

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Every time I get to tuck my grandbabies in bed, I whisper to them how much they are loved.

“Who loves you bigger than the sky?”

“Gita,” Asher says, naming me first.

“Who loves you bigger than the mountains?”

“Mommy,” Asher says.

“Who loves you bigger than the ocean?”

“Daddy,” Asher says.

He and his sister, Ainsley, are tucked in every night with hugs and kisses and love.

Not every child is so lucky.

The children who come to Providence House often arrive with everything they own in a blue plastic bag. All of them have been abused or neglected or are on the verge of those.

Providence House is a crisis nursery and a shelter for at-risk babies and children up to 6 years old, children like the 4-year-old who went hungry so often, he hid food to feed his baby sister.

Children like Bobby, who came there after his fourth foster home didn’t want him. He came back to Providence House many years later carrying a fire truck with a bow on top. He said to give it to a little boy like him.

“I was here two weeks, but all I remember was my 5th birthday party. It was the first one I ever had,” he told the staff. Then he started to cry. “I remember people singing to me and hugging me. It was the first time someone told me, ‘I love you.'”

Children like the three who showed up one winter in a van, sitting on black garbage bags filled with their belongings. Their mom had been badly beaten and fled her partner. The children stayed at Providence House for a month while she recovered and found a safe place for them to stay.

Children like the two girls whose mom is dying of leukemia. Their mom grew up in foster care and didn’t want her girls sent there. An oncologist introduced their mom to Providence House so they would have somewhere to stay when she is too sick to care for them.

The stories both break your heart and fill it.

One day a woman drove up with a van full of things from the Providence House wish list at www.provhouse.org She cried as she told them that 20 years ago she came there drug- and alcohol-addicted. She and her baby girl had been evicted. She’s now clean and sober and got her child back. “I held a baby shower at my office for you because I always swore I would pay you back for helping me,” she said.

Another day, a letter came from Iowa. A woman thanked the staff for protecting her and her daughter when she fled an abusive relationship. Inside the envelope was the child’s first grade report card. It had an honor roll star on it. “I would never have seen this if Providence House hadn’t been there for me and my daughter,” she wrote.

Last year Providence House protected 137 children.

Last year, Providence House had to turn 120 children away.

They need help to help more children.

Providence House has launched a $1.8 million, three-phase project. It will put business offices and living areas on one campus. It will allow them to raise the age of children they shelter to 10 years old. It will allow siblings to stay together in one room. It will create a Family Intervention Center to help parents become better parents.

On Sunday, Providence House holds its City2City 5K Child Abuse Prevention Run. Registration is at 8 a.m. The race starts at 9 a.m. at Tower City in downtown Cleveland. It ends at Providence House in Ohio City. Pre-registration is $15; race day. $20. (For information contact Hermes Sports at 216-623-9933 or go tohttp://www.hermescleveland.com/roadracing/events/city2city.asp

Children deserve a safe place to sleep. Let’s help Providence House tuck them in so they fall asleep knowing just how much they are loved.

Join Regina Brett at 7 p.m. Wednesdays on WKSU FM/89.7 for “The Regina Brett Show.” This week: How to reward employees. To reach Regina Brett: rbrett@plaind.com, 216-999-6328 Previous columns online: cleveland.com/brett

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Author: Tonya Sams, The Plain Dealer

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Providence House will celebrate the expansion of its West 32nd Street campus with a groundbreaking ceremony at 11 a.m. today.

“We are so excited,” said Natalie Leek-Nelson, Providence House president and CEO. “This will allow us to meet state requirements and increase the number of children we care for. This is the largest expansion in Providence history.”

Providence House protects Cuyahoga County children who are at risk of being abused or neglected. The nearly $2 million, three-phase project combines all of its administrative offices and residential areas onto one campus.

Some of the residential areas and administrative offices are in Leo’s House, across the street from Providence House.

Providence House founder Sister Hope Greener, Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson; Joseph Gauntner, Cuyahoga County deputy chief of staff for health and human services; Cleveland City Councilman Joe Cimperman and County Councilwoman Yvonne Conwell were expected to join staff, board members and donors for the event.

Providence House raised the funds from private donors, companies and organizations, as well as the Ohio Department of Mental Health and the City of Cleveland’s Vacant Properties Initiative.

Leek-Nelson said child abuse cases were up 25 percent from January 2010 to December 2011, according to the Public Children Services Association of Ohio, a statewide child welfare monitoring organization.

Last year 21,209 calls about suspected child abuse and neglect were made to 216-696-KIDS. Cuyahoga County ranks No. 1 in Ohio for child abuse and neglect cases.

Leek-Nelson said that many parents who take their children to the campus want to end the cycle of abuse and are taking responsibility. Leaving their children in a safe environment allows parents to focus on their own well-being so that they can be good caregivers.

“Ninety-nine percent of the children are reunited with their families,” she said. That usually occurs within a month.

Construction is to begin Wednesday. Demolition on six homes on the site has begun. The first stage, which includes a new 7,000-square-foot wing to the Crisis Nursery in Leo’s House, is to be completed in November.

Providence House now takes in children up to 6 years old. But this expansion will raise the age limit to 10, allowing siblings to stay together in one room.

This part of the expansion will also help to increase the number of children that Providence House can protect. The number of children who reside there will increase from 12 to 20, which will allow a yearly total of 250 children.

The second part of the expansion includes transforming Providence House into a new Family Intervention Center. The center will help provide parenting education and six months of aftercare once children are returned to their parents.

The final stage includes the creation of the 60,000-square-foot Children and Family Campus with the Children’s Village Homes and Education Center. This will allow all the facilities to reside under one roof. That project is expected to be completed by 2020.

Leek-Nelson said that in the last four years, 422 children had to be turned away.

“It’s heartbreaking,” she said. “These children need this. We have to grow to be able to help them.”