A Letter from Co-Founder Ana Sutton

Many years ago, I didn’t know that homeless children lived in our country nor did I understand the problems they face in receiving a proper education. My “awakening” to the existence of this population came, oddly enough, by viewing a segment of Good Morning America, featuring a school in Phoenix by the name of Thomas J. Pappas..

Since I had recently moved to Arizona and was looking for opportunities to volunteer, I decided to go down to the school and spend time in whatever capacity was needed. Little did I know, this decision would change my life for the better forever!

When I started, I was assigned to aid a first grade teacher. It quickly became apparent that most of the children seemed lethargic, detached, tired and dirty looking, aggressive and un-empathic. Because I am a therapist with training in play therapy, I decided to ask permission to start treating some of the children, in collaboration with the school psychologist. What started as a simple “volunteer project” of a few hours a week quickly grew into a full-time job. Within the first couple of months I was seeing fifty or more children, and the need was always increasing.

Because I could not do all the work alone, after discussing the issue with my husband, we decided to start a non-profit company, endowing it through the “Sutton Family Trust”. Our goal seemed simple enough: “Deliver free mental health services to homeless children, within the school setting, using practicum students and interns from local universities.” However, implementing our vision proved to be much harder than expected.

Countless hours were spent planning and developing a program not only suitable for the children, but also acceptable to universities as an internship site. We were required by the school district to develop ways to measure the efficacy of our program, and this research had to be correlated to academic success. Although we searched the scientific literature, we found this had never been attempted before.

In time, with great effort and dedication, Nana’s Children has accomplished those goals and much more. Today, we are well-established and are a recognized mental health provider both nationally and internationally. We have consistently presented the model in Europe and South America and have been asked to return to Argentina next February to train psychologists on how to set up similar programs. We have also been the recipients of numerous awards such as the “Flame of Leadership” Award from the Association Amigos Medios Hispanos and the “Best Organization in Delivery of Mental Health Services to Mental Health Children” from Play Therapy International.

Although the Pappas Schools closed in May of 2008, Nana’s Children remains committed to its original mission of delivering innovative, mental health services to homeless children at their schools of attendance.
In order to be able to continue our mission, we need partners who share and support our vision and we would appreciate your donations.

Ana  Sutton, MA, PT
President, Co-Founder and Director of Clinical Services.                  
Nana’s Children Mental Health Foundation, Inc.