Hi Friend,

Strong families are at the center of thriving children. That is why here at Brightpoint, we work with the entire family to support the children in our communities. 

Each year millions of children are exposed to violence in their homes, making it hard for them to think and learn, or express their feelings in healthy ways.  

Brightpoint is there to help families work through the impact of violence so they can heal. In Bloomington, we have a Mental Health & Wellness donor-funded program called the Butterfly Project that reaches the most vulnerable children and families. The Butterfly Project offers home visiting, therapy for children and youth ages 0-13 and their families, and community education. 

James* is a 5-year-old boy who witnessed domestic violence in him home and began working with a therapist for help healing from his trauma, which caused so much anxiety he couldn’t participate in his normal activities anymore.

He may be a small child, but he has very big feelings. James gets so anxious before basketball games that he has trouble breathing, which is so hard for him since truly loves basketball!

We believe that the most important asset for child and youth well-being is the family – and for James, that is his mom, Rachel*. To build off the loving and trusting bond between them, the therapist helped Rachel come up with strategies to better support her son when he feels anxious. 

Before his basketball games, Rachel helps James prepare by playing a song together and saying, "you got this, you're great, you're brave, and I love you." Then, Rachel holds him tight, and they breathe together to calm his body.  

After practicing these strategies together, James was finally able to play basketball again! 

James met with this therapist for one-on-one sessions too, but therapy looks different for young children than it does for adults. In a comfortable playroom, James’ therapist keeps toys that he can play with to act out his feelings. The therapist came to understand his feelings and together they worked on ways to solve problems through play.  

James also learned strategies to calm himself down when he feels anxious, such as hot chocolate breathing. James pretends that he is holding a mug of hot chocolate. He practices blowing on it because it’s too hot and then sipping the hot chocolate. Rachel saw James practicing his hot chocolate breathing at home and noticed how much it helped him!  

Over time, Rachel set up a consistent daily routine for James to follow and continued supporting and encouraging him before basketball games and other situations that made him feel anxious.  

With help from the Butterfly Project, James and Rachel are well on their way to healing from their trauma. Their story shows how supporting the whole family surrounds children with the love and care they need to heal and grow. 

Your support helps make the Butterfly Project and other family support services offered at Brightpoint possible. Thank you for playing such an important role in strengthening the most vulnerable children and families in our community! 

All the best, 

Maureen Kelly
Director of Individual Giving 

*Names are changed for privacy